The Secret of Seireitei
by Charlotte-san
Summary: My own spin of Secret of Moonacre with Karin as the main character. When Karin's father dies, her and her sister must go live with Ichigo in Seireitei, where a world of surprises is held. AU Picture is from Bleach episode 132
1. The Beginning

**eA/N: Okay, so just a few things to say. **

**1) This is a HitsuKarin story!**

**2) The characters might be OOC, I'm sorry… **

**3) This story is EXTREMELY AU.**

**4) I do NOT own the characters OR the plot. The characters are the amazing Tite Kubo and the plot is the one from The Secret of Moonacre but with my own twist. Enjoy!**

The Secret of Seireitei

**Karin's POV**

I fought back tears as she watched her father's casket being lowered into the ground, I hadn't cried since My mother died when she was 4, she wasn't going to cry now. However, a glance at my sister proved that Yuzu to be crying. She walked over to her mother's grave and put down the flowers she had gotten her. Out of her peripherals she saw oddly colored white hair, a look up revealed a boy about her age leaning against a gazebo in the distance. He was dressed in a black polo and white jeans, _how strange…_ Karin thought.

"Who is-"

"Come on Karin and Yuzu, you have to come with to read your father's will. And then it's off to your brother Ichigo's home," Nanao tugged at my sleeve a little bit. I sighed then glanced back, only the boy was gone. Nanao and I walked to her father's lawyer's office across the block. They finally got there only for the my sister and I to come across the shock of our lives.

"What the HELL do you mean all that my father left me was a BOOK?" Karin slammed her hands onto the table. _Jeez, and Yuzu got most of his medical supplies…_

"Just that Miss Kurosaki. Now your brother's wife Rukia will be at your house later tonight to pick you up. Nanao and I will accompany you home to finish packing then you'll be off," Shunsui, who always wore an odd pink ladies robe over his cloths, stood up and the four of us continued to my old home. The next two hours went by in a blur, I was in too much shock to notice the time passing. I had already said goodbye to all of my soccer buddies, and realized with a jolt these were my last hours in Karakura. Finally there was a knock on the door.

"That must be Rukia, I'll show her up," Nanao went to the front door and led a very short woman with black hair in.

"Oh Karin, Yuzu, I'm so sorry!" The woman walked up to Karin and hugged her then moved over to Yuzu," You might not know me, but I'm Rukia." Although I'm not usually one for hugging and such signs of emotion, the hug was appreciated, "Well, where's your stuff Karin? It looks like you have all of Ichigo's old kendo equipment and some of his soccer stuff, but only a few bags of your own."

"Actually that's all mine. I'm top of my kendo class because I train all of the time." I replied pridefully.

"Karin, you're too modest! She's the top fighter in her kendo class, plus she was the captain of her soccer team. As for me, my father had been teaching me how to be a great doctor!" Yuzu beamed.

"Well that's great! But we had better get heading home if we want to get there before supper," Rukia said and the small group got all of the girls' bags into the car quickly. On the long car ride there, with me in the passenger seat and Yuzu in the back, I took a long look at the book my father had left me. It was obviously very old and had a leather cover. Once she opened it up, it revealed beautiful illustrations inside. Then I started to read.

_There once was a young woman of the Shinigami clan, who was so beautiful even Mother Nature regarded her as her own. Mother Nature was indeed so proud, that she gave the woman magic pearls to grant her wishes. She fell in love with a member of her family's rival clan, the Kurosaki's._

They showed a picture of the girl. She was a beautiful woman, and she looked strong willed even in the picture in the book. She looked like the king of person I have always strived to be.

_When their wedding was announced, she decided to share the pearls with her father and her fiancée. What they didn't know until it was too late was that the pearls revealed the darkness in others, which the girl always overlooked. So she took her pearls and ran away-_

"Karin?" Rukia's voice pulled Karin out of the book, "Yuzu is asleep and I was wondering if you wanted to learn how the open the gate. Usually Jinta or Ururu are here to open it for us, but they're both probably eating right now."

"Of course! I really need to stretch my legs," Karin said getting out. As she was walking up to the gate she felt as if though someone was behind her. She heard Rukia screech and then whirled around. A man with shocking rad hair up in a ponytail was trying to grab Rukia who was fighting back with surprise strength. The next thing Karin knew, a hand was clamped over her mouth and someone was trying to drag her away. But Karin Kurosaki was the top kendo fighter at her school and wasn't going to let that go to waste. She stomped on her assailant's foot and elbowed his stomach. Surprised, the attacker let go of Karin and she turned around and kneed him in the groin. After he fell over, Karin realized with a start that it was the white-haired boy from the cemetery. With a glance towards Rukia, Karin started to laugh: The short woman had her attacker in a headlock and was screaming at him to leave them alone while he cowered in fear. Soon Rukia ended his whining with a punch to the face and he too collapsed.

"The 5,000th moon is almost here Kurosaki, remember that," A deep voice warned from behind her. The boy was back up and dragging his companion towards the woods.

"Come on Karin, I have the gate open. Let's go on inside." The two got back into the car then drove up to the house where Karin's brother was waiting. Well, house wasn't the best word for it, it was more of a castle than anything.

"Ichigo!" Yuzu hopped out of the car and towards their brother hugging him around the waist.

"It's getting worse the closer we get Ichigo," Rukia said mysteriously.

"I know. But let's just forget that for now, what Karin, you don't see me for years and all I get is a blank stare?" Ichigo smiled. Karin smiled back and the two siblings shared a brief hug, "Now let's go inside and eat. Then I'll have someone show you to your rooms."

**A/N: Okay, a few minor detail changes here. I changed it to Karin's point of view and changed a few other things. Thank you guys for putting up with me and my OCD ^^ Anyways, PLEASE REVIEW! Any kind of review is appreciated by the way; well flames are tolerated, but whatever. If you don't review I'll… make you take Rukia to the Chappy store and pay for EVERYTHING that she buys! MWAHAHAHA!**


	2. Arrival

**A/N: okay just a few more things that I may have forgotten to mention last chapter. Karin and Yuzu are about 17 in this fanfic and so Ichigo is about 21. Like I said before I own nothing… sadly.**

_Italics= thoughts_

**Karin's POV**

"Ichigo!" Yuzu hopped out of the car and towards their brother hugging him around the waist.

"It's getting worse the closer we get Ichigo," Rukia said mysteriously.

"I know. But let's just forget that for now, what Karin, you don't see me for years and all I get is a blank stare?" Ichigo smiled. I smiled back and the two of us shared a brief hug, "Now let's go inside and eat. Then I'll show you to your rooms. Hey everyone! Will you all come down for a moment to meet my baby sisters?" Ichigo called around and some people came out from… well I didn't know yet, but I'd find out.

"Che, we aren't little anymore Ichigo!" I crossed my arms.

"You always will be to me though!" Ichigo ruffled each of our hair, "Every time I see you, you both look so much more different from each other! How are you two even twins?" It was true, Yuzu was the kinder and girlier of the two with light brown hair, while I was more tom-boyish and had black hair.

"What do you need Ichigo?" A woman with long orange hair asked from the doorway. Behind her Karin could see two men, one of them tall and tan with dark brown hair, the other paler with glasses and black hair, "Oh! Are these your sisters? Ichigo has been trying to make sure EVERY thing is per-"

"Ahem. Yes, this is Karin and Yuzu. Karin and Yuzu, this is Orihime," He pointed to the girl, "Chad," He pointed to the tall tan man, "And Uryuu." He pointed to the last man with the glasses, "Where are Tatsuki, Jinta and Ururu?"

"What do you need us for crybaby?" A woman with black hair walked into the room followed by a red-headed boy and another black haired girl with odd bangs.

Ichigo scowled at the woman, "This is Tatsuki, Jinta and Ururu. They are all my friends living here and paying their rent by helping out here. Uryuu, will you please show the girls to their rooms?" Uryuu nodded and picked up our suitcases. We followed him to our rooms.

"Yuzu, this is your room, Ichigo decided to put you a little bit closer to their room because he-" Uryuu was cut off.

"I didn't tell you to explain my reasoning Uryuu!" Ichigo snapped from the entrance.

"Karin, your room is up in the tower. I can bring your stuff up to the door, but I don't fit through the door." Uryuu looked at me.

"Wait, you mean I won't be sharing rooms with Karin?" Yuzu cried out.

"You're welcome to come up at any time you need to Yuzu." I reassured my sister, "I can carry my bags up, but thank you Uryuu." I grabbed my bags and walked up the stairs. As I opened the door I was surprised. It wasn't my style at all and I had the sinking feeling Rukia designed it. There was a fireplace with an oak mantle, built into the mantle was an intricately designed horse's head on the right end. The bed was bigger than my bed back in Karakura. It was only after lying down and looking up did I notice that the ceiling was painted like the night sky. The rest of the furniture was more whimsical than my style, but I could live with it. _After that ride, I think it's time to take a nap before supper._ I closed my eyes and fell asleep.

"Karin?" Ichigo knocked on his sister's door and peeked in to see her sleeping. He smiled and retreated downstairs, "Don't bother Karin, she's sleeping soundly right now." Ichigo told everyone.

**Meanwhile, deep in the forest on Shinigami's land (Toshiro's POV)…**

"What do you mean you couldn't capture the girl successfully?" An old man was yelling at the two men from before, "Toshiro," He directed his attention to me, "You are my most trusted advisor…" _I'm your son, and that's what you choose to say to me?_ "And Renji," He looked at the red-headed man, "I'm certain that you won't do this again. Now, we just have to get the girl out into the open, from what you've told me the youngest Kurosaki, Karin, is to be the next Moon Princess. She supposedly goes out of her way to help those in need, especially her family, although she isn't pegged to be the overly king type. Set up a trap and for goodness sake, make sure none of her family is with her. Especially if you were both beat up by girls. You are dismissed; I have a meeting with my most trusted advisors."

_Old man, you and your "trusted advisors" are going to have another meeting and make sure that I miss it by doing something like paperwork for the bills. I don't understand why your own son does so much of the paperwork, there are nine other captains that could easily share the work with me. That reminds me, where is Shunsui, I know he was spying on the Kurosaki girls, but he should be here by now… _

**The next morning, with Karin…**

"Huh? What? Where am I?" I looked around the unfamiliar room then blinked, _That's right, I'm at Ichigo's house…_ I got up and looked around. On the nightstand next to my bed there was a glass of water and a cookie. On the chair in the corner was a riding suit _Like I'm going to need that_ I smiled and went downstairs after grabbing the book my father left me, _Maybe I'll get a chance to finish it… well maybe I should try re-reading it. I didn't really pay all that much attention the first time._

I chuckled and walked into the dining room, "Good morning! Where's Yuzu?" I looked around the table at Rukia and Ichigo who looked up at her, surprisingly Ichigo scowled.

"Where'd you get that book?" Ichigo grabbed it and walking out of the room, and I followed.

"Old Goat chin gave it to me in his will! It's mine so give it back!" I tried to snatch the book but Rukia held her back.

"I know where he's putting it. I'll show you later, and if not me then Chad will," Rukia whispered in her ear, "For now, you are free to go and explore the house! The only off-limits rooms are the library and the basement." I grabbed a piece of toast and set off exploring. Soon enough however, I found the door to the off- limits basement. I opened the door to find an empty room with a trap door in the center of the room.

"What part of off-limits don't you seem to get Karin?" I gulped _Uh oh, Ichigo is going to yell at me now._

"I-I didn't realize what room I was in?" I turned around and I heard my brother sigh, frustrated.

"Tatsuki, will you get the whip?" Ichigo called behind him.

**A/N: That's all I can write right now, but I promise the HitsuKarin will kick in next chapter! But for now… CLIFFHANGER! And don't forget to review, otherwise I'll tell Kurotsuchi that you're a willing subject for experiments!**


	3. Meeting

**Karin's POV**

"What part of off-limits don't you seem to get Karin?" I gulped _Uh oh, Ichigo is going to yell at me now._

"I-I didn't realize what room I was in?" I turned around and heard my brother sigh, frustrated.

"Tatsuki, will you get the whip?" Ichigo called behind him, "And saddle up the horses please." I let out a breath I had been holding. _Of course my brother would be that stupid! I should have guessed that he meant something else, he was usually super over-protective._

"Oi idiot! Don't you know that a 'whip' for a horse is called a riding crop, not a whip?" I yelled at my brother who scratched his head in response.

"It is? I guess I've never known that," Ichigo trailed off, "But anyways, it's time for you to learn how to ride a horse. It's the easiest way to get around here, plus Rukia has already gone out with Yuzu, so you have no choice." Ichigo left the room dragging me with him. Once we'd finally gotten out to the stable, I was shown to a grey stallion, "We haven't named this horse yet because we'd just bought him for you. According to Rukia, Yuzu has already claimed the name Raku of all names…"

"Hmm, I'll name him Bostov!" I smiled.

"Whatever floats your boat crazy girl!" Ichigo ruffled my hair, knowing that I'd hate it. He was rewarded with a glare to which he only smirked in reply to.

Surprisingly, I excelled in horse riding, "It probably has to do with my athletic background is all," I reassured a sulking Ichigo who was commenting on how long it took him to master the skill. While I was practicing, a large sandy colored dog came out and sat on the ground, it looked like a cross between a St. Bernard and a Great Dane.

"Whatever, this is Kon. Don't worry, You're a Kurosaki so he won't bite you… hopefully. Now, since I know you're tough and can handle yourself a lot better than Yuzu in the wild, I'll let you go riding by yourself. BUT there are a few rules: 1. No going into the woods. The men who attacked you and Rukia yesterday live in there. 2. Be back by 3 in the afternoon so that you can get cleaned up before supper. And 3. Please don't do anything too stupid. I have to go inside to… fix a few things, later." Ichigo scowled at me then left

"Well see you later then," I called after him.

"Hey Karin, I've talked to Uryuu and he'll show you where the book is instead of Chad when you get back," Rukia called riding up to Karin.

"That's great, but aren't you supposed to be with Yuzu?" I looked around for my twin.

"Oh yeah, but Jinta decided to take over for me and show her how to open the gate and show her around the house afterwards. It's okay!" Rukia said and then jumped off of her horse. I took this as a dismissal and left on my horse. After about an hour of riding around the meadows, I finally let curiosity get the better of me and got off of my horse. _I can handle myself just fine, besides, the woods look beautiful!_

"Stay here Bostov, I'll be back very soon!" I tied up the stallion and walked into the woods. A short ways in, I heard a squeaking noise and decided to go and investigate. It turned out to be a large rabbit caught in a trap.

**Toshiro's POV:**

_Perfect, I at least caught the right twin in my trap_. I signaled to Renji, Madareme, and Yumichika showing they had the target. With a nod of affirmation from the other three, they quietly got into positions surrounding the girl and the trap.

**Karin's POV:**

"Well, I can't just leave you here, I'll take you back to Yuzu. At least she knows how to deal with injured animals," I trailed off as she looked for a way to safely get the small creature out of the trap when the hairs on the back of her neck stood on end and she had the feeling someone was watching her.

"What do you know," A familiar voice drawled monotonously behind her, "One trap, two catches" I stood up and whirled around, only to find my face inches away from the white-haired boy who had attacked me, causing my face to gain and annoying blush. _I can handle this; I mean I already beat him up once. I just won't have so much surprise on my side, if only I had the sense to carry my kendo sword with me. Although his proximity is really… distracting._

"It isn't safe for a girl to be walking in the woods alone you know. Some mean people might try to snatch her up," Another man walked into sight, it was the redhead from before that Rukia had beat up. I now noticed he had a bunch of weird tattoos all over his face and neck. _A little more difficult, but still-_

"Unless of course you're looking for a fight," A third man joined them grinning madly, this one was bald and had on odd make up also.

"Madareme that is so not beautiful, as for you girl, It's not beautiful for you to be walking alone either," A black-haired man whose hair was cut into a bob and who also had odd feathers by his eyes joined the now growing group.

"Shut up Yumichika!" The bald one replied. I gulped _Ichigo is going to kill me if these idiots don't. Maybe I can try to channel my inner Yuzu and appear innocent!_

"I'm not sure what it is you guys want, but I'll be-" I started fluttering my eyelashes in false innocence.

"We actually want you to come along with us back to our house if you don't mind little girl," Then redhead smirked. No one, and I mean no one, calls me a little girl then smirks and gets away with it.

"What. Did. You. Just. Call. Me?" I snapped all of a sudden, my act dropped, "I am NOT a little girl!" I launched myself at the nearest person, which was the bald one, who was apparently named Madareme. He wasn't expecting this and I managed a few well-placed punches before the others joined the brawl. I managed to hit or kick all of them except for the snowflake who hadn't joined in, when I heard a menacing growl.

"Damn it! It's the demon dog, run away!" Yumichika squealed in an un-manly manner and ran away with the others close behind. Kon growled again as if signaling to the men it was time to go. The snowflake however, stayed behind a moment to speak to me.

He walked up to me calmly and leaned in close, I tensed up, waiting for an attack that never came, "My name is Toshiro Hitsugaya, and you'll do well to remember that Princess. I'll be back for you soon enough," His tone never changed but it sent shivers down my spine. To make matters worse, afterwards he bowed at her, over exaggerated of course, and then kissed her cheek, "Until then Your Highness!" Then he ran quickly into the woods, leaving me, furious and blushing, behind. Of course the blushing was from anger, not embarrassment or because I kind of like the kiss. _How dare he! I will make him pay!_

"Well, I can't leave a rabbit like you trapped out here with no way out," I grumbled as I turned back towards the trapped animal. I was able to quickly release it, then carried it back with me to Bostov with Kon at her side. I was able to ride back to her brother's house in record time (at least that's what I guessed) then marched up the stairs into the hallway.

"You're back ear-" Ichigo paused looking at the rabbit in my hands. Immediately his eyes hardened, "Karin, I told you not to go into the woods, I should have known you wouldn't listen to me," He scowled at me again and I grinned sheepishly, "Well, you'll have to take care of that hare, now won't you?"

"Oh, this isn't just a big rabbit, it's a hare? Good to know," I mumbled as I walked up the stairs to my room. There I just lay down for a while and watched the hare hop around my bed. _Now, all I have to do is get my book back, and gain my revenge on Toshiro._

**Meanwhile, with Toshiro…**

"I hate that dog, so much!" Madareme snarled, "I could've taken her down if it hadn't shown up!"

"You mean that you failed to catch the girl? You four 'big, strong men' couldn't defeat a little girl?" A voice said from behind them.

"Byakuya! Well you see sir, the girl wasn't exactly as defenseless as you might think, plus that demon dog showed up!" Renji stuttered his way through their excuse.

"Hmph, want anything done around here, you have to do it yourself. Come back then, Toshiro's father needs to hear about this." Byakuya led them towards their mansion silently.

_Why did I do that? I have never in my life acted like that, and yet something about her makes me want to smack her, protect he- nope! I don't want to protect her at all!_

Toshiro dropped behind the others a little bit to hide the blush that was forming on his cheeks. Once they all arrived back at their manor, there was a meeting with all of Yamamoto's captains, all thirteen of them. They were ranked in no certain order of course, but Yamamoto was still number one.

Second was Soi Fon, a beautiful but cold woman who was very fast on her feet.

Third was missing their captain, he was one of the traitors: Gin Ichimaru.

Fourth was Retsu Unohana, the medical woman. She never seemed to frown at anyone, but her smile was scarily effective at making people feel guilty.

Fifth lost their captain as well, Sosuke Aizen was the leader of the traitors. He had attempted to kill his own lieutenant, but failed.

Sixth was the stone-faced Byakuya Kuchiki.

Seventh was Sajin Komamura, the man was very hairy, and very large. He was usually also very quiet.

Eighth came Shunsui Kyoraku, who was pretty much useless until he was needed to go and collect some data for the twelfth captain.

The Ninth captain was Kaname Tousen, until he too abandoned the Shinigami to follow Aizen.

Tenth of course, was Toshiro.

Eleventh was Kanpachi Zaraki, who picked a fight at any time. He also was known for wearing bells in his hair to 'Make it a more even fight.'

Twelfth was Mayuri Kurotsuchi, now he was a mad scientist and everyone avoided him as a general rule.

Thirteenth was his father's oldest friend Ukitake, who was sadly almost always ill.

"Everyone now is the time to tell everything you have learned about Karin Kurosaki. She is not to be considered our greatest threat, this Moon Princess, but we have to make sure we keep an eye on her. If she goes through with the story, and tries to break the curse, the traitors may take advantage of it. Therefore, we need a plan to be put into action." Yamamoto announced. _This is going to be a very long meeting._

**A/N: Well, that's all for now folks! Once again, some minor changes to the chapter, but I did change the captain's around a little so that it's before the Visored are accepted back. Not many things to say, but maybe a few clarifications are needed.**

**Bostov is the girls' nickname for Kon**

**Raku is an anime only character, he appears in an episode and Yuzu takes a liking to him, I don't want to give too much away, but he does save Yuzu's life during that particular episode.**

**It may seem odd to some of you to have Yamamoto as Toshiro's father, but it's the only way I could really get the plot to work out.**

**REVIEW … please? If you don't, I'll tell Rangiku just how much you would LOVE one of her suffocating hugs.**


	4. Learning

**A/N: Oh. My. Long break! I'm sorry for not updating… although I'm pretty sure really no one has been reading this story. Remember, reviews are always wanted, even flames! *Hint hint* And I'd like to thank FlyingLikeAButterfly for being my sole reviewer! Your prize is *drumroll* a super duper late update! **

**Disclaimer: I still don't own anything, but I'm trying! I promise! …Okay I'm really not.**

_Italics- The thoughts of whoever's point of view it is_

"Everyone now is the time to tell everything you have learned about Karin Kurosaki. She is not to be considered our greatest threat, this Moon Princess, but we have to make sure we keep an eye on her. If she goes through with the story, and tries to break the curse, the traitors may take advantage of it. Therefore, we need a plan to be put into action." Yamamoto announced. _This is going to be a very long meeting._

**Toshiro's POV**

"Well, in the time I served as her father's lawyer, I noted that she is the top kendo fighter for her age, which is 17, in Karakura. She also plays soccer and is a little… tomboy-ish. That's all," Shunsui stepped forward for his announcement then stepped back.

"Toshiro, Renji, Madareme, Yumichika. What did you four notice about her when you _attempted_ to catch her?" Yamamoto looked at them.

"Well sir, she did fall for the trap, so she does seemingly have a heart." Madareme grumbled.

"She has a very un-beautiful sense of style, although she does seem very beautiful for a teenager," Yumichika added.

"I, uh well the first time I went with Captain Hitsugaya to capture the girl I was, er, distracted. Same with the second time," Renji scratched his head and avoided eye contact while the captains snickered at the lower-ranked lieutenant being beat up by smaller women.

_And this is why you three fools were not made captains when the traitors abandoned us._

"If I may sir?" I stepped forward and everyone's attention away from a relieved Renji, "While these three idiots rushed to fight the girl, I observed her fighting style. She is quick to anger, and quicker to act. Renji called her a 'little girl' and she jumped the nearest person, which happened to be an unprepared Madareme, and began punching and kicking in a seemingly unorthodox way. However, further examination proved that she would use a punch every now and then, but mainly stuck to kicking. This may be from her experience as a soccer player. That's all," I stepped back and Shunsui started to snicker, "What?" I snapped.

"Oh nothing, you just seemed to watch her quite closely is all. Just wondering if little Shiro has a little crush on a certain Mo-" Shunsui started.

"Enough! Now we will dismiss for lunch, but afterwards I want all of you, except Renji Madareme and Yumichika, to come in here for a strategy meeting. You're dismissed!" Yamamoto smacked his cane on the ground and the room cleared.

**Karin's POV**

"Karin? It's Uryuu," A voice said from outside my room. _Maybe he'll show me where the book is!_ I jumped up and opened the door.

"Are you going to show me-" Uryuu shoved his glasses higher up on his nose and cut me off.

"Where my sewing room is? Yes I am," He grabbed my hand and pulled me along behind him. After too many hallways to count, we arrived at what I was assuming to be the library, "Rukia dragged you brother out of the house right after you came back, but you never know who could be watching. I don't know where it is, so this is as far as I go. Good luck,"

_What an odd dude. Hmm now where would Ichigo hide something. He'd want to put it in the most obvious place that wasn't TOTALLY obvious. He wouldn't put it in the bookshelf because he'd never be able to find it again. Aha! Of course, under the couch cushion! _

I pulled out the book and opened it, this time when I opened it I looked at the spine. There was ribbon coming out of the spine to serve as a book mark, and the ribbon was tied to… a key? _Weird, then again, that word pretty much sums up my life right now._ I sat down and picked up where I left off… I think.

_When their wedding was announced, she decided to share the pearls with her father and her fiancée. What they didn't know until it was too late was that the pearls revealed the darkness in others, which the girl always overlooked. So she took her pearls and ran away to never be seen again. Before she disappeared though, she left the families with a curse._

"_There will be moon princesses after me, and if by the 5000__th__ moon none of them have succeeded in figuring out how to break the curse, then this valley is doomed!"_

_Now the valley, named Seireitei Valley, is waiting for the next Moon Princess to save its inhabitants._

"That's it? Wait, that boy, Toshiro, said the 5,000th moon was almost here. If I have the key, I wonder if the other family has the pearls? I need to talk to someone about this!" I jumped up and ran downstairs. I only knew where the kitchen was at this point so I went to talk Orihime.

"Oh! Hello Karin! Did you need-" Orihime smiled at me, but I didn't have the patience.

"Orihime! Did you know about the curse?" She nodded, "But-but WHAT?"

"Oh Karin, I'm so happy you know now! And of course you realized it's you, right?" Orihime smiled again.

"M-me? But why?" I sat down in a chair confused.

"Well because you're the youngest! I mean I know you and Yuzu are twins, but she's older than you by three minutes of course. So the Moon Princess is you!" Orihime clapped and jumped around a little bit, "It must be so dreamy and whimsical to be a princess! If I was a princess, I'd do so many things!" Orihime's eyes were shining as she continued, "And of course since Uryuu is my boyfriend, he'd make a perfect knight in shining armor!"

"Yeah, I'm gonna go for a walk, later Orihime!" I got up and walked outside. Everyone here was crazy! The neighbors, my brother's friends, hell the horses are probably crazy. But not Bostov, definitely not him! My thoughts drifted to other things while I walked.

_Orihime sure seemed to think being a princess is a great thing, I sure wouldn't mind have a knight in shining armor sometimes. I wonder if Toshiro would be up for the job- eep! I have to stop thinking things like that!_

I didn't notice my feet had taken me to the woods until a voice called out to me.

"Hello Karin!" I whirled around to see a woman with mocha-colored skin and purple hair looking at me.

"How do you know my name?" I scowled at her. To my surprise, she chuckled.

"You're rather popular around these parts Karin. Why don't you come and have tea with me at my house?" The woman held out her hand for me to take. I looked at her suspiciously.

"Listen, um" I didn't know her name. Of freaking course.

"Yoruichi Shihoin." She replied patiently.

"Okay, Yoruichi, how do I know you won't try to kidnap me like those idiots earlier?" I crossed my arms.

"You don't! If it makes you feel better, my adopted son and daughter work for your brother," Yoruichi laughed and grabbed my arm. She dragged me to a little shop in the middle of the woods, despite my protests. _Why is there a candy shop in the middle of the woods?_ "The answer's simple!" Yoruichi chuckled again as if she read my mind, "We always wanted a candy shop, but this is where we live. So we made our house into a candy shop as well!"

"Uh, yeah. That makes a lot of sense," I scratched the back of my head when Yoruichi let go.

"Hello there!" A blonde man wearing a white and green striped hat and clogs. He held a fan in one hand and covered the bottom half of his face with it, "You must be the lovely Karin Kurosaki, am I right?"

I didn't like the looks of the man, "What's it to you? And who are you?" Both the man and Yoruichi laughed at my straight-forwardness.

"Pardon my lack of manners! I am Kisuke Urahara, a humble candy shop owner. And to answer your other question, it's simple. You're going to free this valley from a curse, and we're going to bring you to the Shinigami's castle. You brought the key, so that is what you wanted, right?" The man looked back at me with his fan still covering his mouth. If I had to guess though, judging by the way his eyes were gleaming, he was smiling largely.

"Yes. I mean no. I mean… WHO THE HELL ARE YOU PEOPLE?" I burst out.

"Urahara and Yoruichi, we already told you that. Now we've got to go to the Shinigami's castle now otherwise we won't get there in time for their supper, that's when they're the most distracted," Urahara answered my questioning glare.

"Let's go!" Yoruichi grabbed my hand and dragged me into the woods once again.

"Would you please stop doing that?" I screamed at the woman.

**Toshiro's POV**

_Man, I never thought that meeting would end! At least it's time to eat now!_ I followed the captains to the dining hall to eat. All we had accomplished from that meeting was deciding that storming the house would NOT be in our best interest, that the girl was similar to lightning (in the sense that you never knew when or where she'd strike) and that it would be best to have chairs in our meetings. _Yeah_, _we really need to stop getting off topic._ Then again, it didn't help that I kept getting distracted by what Shunsui had said.

_I mean, sure Kurosaki is… cute, but I _don't _have a crush on her! She was stubborn, rude, quick to fight, strong, had nice legs, not to mention a nice- NO! I refuse to think that, although I do know if she got hurt, or was put into danger, I would be freaking out. She seems to have that effect on me._

"Why are you blushing Captain Hitsugaya?" Renji interrupted my thoughts. Even though I was a captain, I sat with Renji, Yumichika, Madareme and a few others. We mostly sat together just because, well, we didn't have anyone else to sit with. Shuuhei Hisagi was a quiet man and the lieutenant of the 9th division, whereas Rangiku Matsumoto was my loud lieutenant who drank. A lot. The only other people who sat at our table were Captain Zaraki and his daughter Yachiru who he insisted learn what his job was. He even brought her on missions with him.

Currently the only ones at our table were Renji, Shuuhei, Matsumoto and I.

"I'm just too warm is all. You know I prefer colder temperatures," I glared at them all daring them to say otherwise.

"AW! THAT'S SO CUTE! Captain is in LOOOVE!" Matsumoto slurred drunkenly.

A vein popped in my head, "I AM NOT!"

**Karin's POV**

"So you're telling me that _this_ is where the Shinigami clan lives?" I'm pretty sure my jaw had unhinged from my skull since my mouth was open so wide.

"Yup! This is as far as we go, so we bid you good luck Karin Kurosaki," Urahara and Yoruichi backed away leaving me crouching behind a bush next to the ginormous doors. I'd have to wait for someone to open-

"I'll be right back, just leave the door open for me!" A man walked out and my jaw fell again at my sheer luck. I snuck in when no one was looking and immediately went up the stairs. I could hear a lot of voices a little ways ahead so I crept along the wall until I came to another set of stairs that looked over what appeared to be the dining room. I spied at a table the red-haired man from before, _what was his name again? Ah yeah! Renji!_ And he was also sitting next to Toshiro, a… busty woman and silent man.

"Well, well, well. What do we have here Yumichika?" The baldy from before blocked my only exit and he was grinning like a madman. The girly guy was with him too.

"That's very unbeautiful to be sneaking around like that!" The girly one said fixing his hair.

"Oh shit." I swore loudly, and saw every eye in the room turn towards me.

**A/N: Whew! That came out in… an hour! NEW RECORD! But I'm not beat yet, so I'm working on the next chapter tonight, and MAYBE having it uploaded (: Remember I do enjoy reviews and will tolerate flames, although I prefer constructive criticism. And I didn't change really anything, but I thought adding that little bit with Orihime was needed, along with adding that Jinta and Ururu live with Urahara and Yoruichi. Now review, otherwise I'll tell Shunsui that you were hitting on Nanao *shudder* Now that is NOT something I'd like to see…**


	5. Fighting back

**A/N: So I still own NOTHING and that makes me sad ): However, I will use my fan fiction rights to finish this story! Actually I just put up chapter 4 and I'm still in the writing mood so… yeah. Now let's see if I can get two chapters up in one night! *Cracks knuckles***

"Well, well, well. What do we have here Yumichika?" The baldy from before blocked my only exit grinning like a madman. The girly guy was with him too.

"That's very unbeautiful to be sneaking around like that!" The girly one said fixing his hair.

"Oh shit." I swore loudly, and saw every eye in the room turn towards me.

**Toshiro's POV**

I looked up to see Karin leaning against the railing, as far from Yumichika and Madareme as she could be. Madareme smiled like a madman, as usual and Yumichika was fixing his hair.

"Seems like the dumb girl came by herself. Huh, saves us a lot of trouble," Zaraki said loudly as everyone focused on the girl. She seemed to remember we were all behind her because she glanced back at us then focused on the two in front of her again.

"I came to make a deal. If I have your promise that you won't hurt me, I'll walk down the stairs by myself. Why the hell else would I be here of my own free will? I mean you had Toshiro stalking me along with the pineapple head, and then four men attack an unsuspecting girl while she's alone in the forest? What the hell?" Karin wasn't in any position to be making deals, but she was anyways, and doing it with more dignity than I thought possible for a girl her- okay so I was only a year older than her, but whatever! However, everyone glanced my way when she said my name. _Aw crap, she used my first name and I didn't even react._

"You have my assurance, if those two try anything, you'll be let free from here." Yamamoto called up. Karin nodded and walked down. Once she was at the bottom however, Yumichika and Madareme grabbed her arms.

**Karin's POV**

"Hey! What about our deal?" I struggled against the two and managed a well-placed kick in the groin to the bald one. He hardly flinched though, and they carried me to the old man. He seemed to age more as he sighed.

"These two will look for any loopholes in deals. Obviously they found one. Your only condition was to be able to walk down the stairs. Now, what did you want? We have more problems than just a menacing teenaged girl to worry about," This old guy sure was rude, I mean really?

I shook my arms out of the grip of those two idiots and shot them each a glare to make them back up, "Yeah, I found out about the pearls and the box and the key. Well, I found the key so you can have it." I tossed the key at the old man, and Toshiro was there to catch it, "Now let me go." I crossed my arms and dared him to challenge me.

"We can't do that. We don't have the pearls," The old man took out a box that looked exactly like the one from the book. When he opened it up, it was empty, "Now with the Moon Princess out of the way, we don't have to worry about Aizen trying to make any moves. Toshiro, Renji, and Matsumoto. Take her to the cells."

_Wait a minute, this valley is doomed if they don't let my do something! I really don't know what yet, but from the sounds of things, if we just sit and twiddle our thumbs something bad will happen._

"Yes sir!" All three said in unison and the two males grabbed my arms.

"Wait a minute! Don't you remember the curse? This valley is doomed if I don't, well I don't know what I have to do, but since I'm the Moon Princess I have to do _something_!" _Those two guys are really strong. _Before they were able to drag me away I managed to spit in the face of the old man, hitting him square in the face. "You bastards. I promise, one day I will get my revenge." I said quietly, but all the more menacingly.

"Come on!" The busty lady, Matsumoto pushed me and then patted my head, "My you are a feisty one, aren't you. No wonder Captain is-"

"Matsumoto! I don't like her. Now let go of her and let her walk. She _is_ allowed to keep her dignity. Know this Kurosaki, if you try anything-" Toshiro warned.

"You know Captain, you don't know that I was going to say that," Matsumoto replied with a twinkle in her eye. I saw Toshiro clench his jaw.

"I'll regret it. I know." I rolled my eyes. We finally made it down by the dungeons, and all the way the two males kept trying to trip me up. Finally Renji took it too far and he stepped on the back of my foot causing me to trip. Both him and Toshiro started to snicker.

"Renji-" Matsumoto started, but I didn't let her finish.

"That's it!" I spun around and kneed Renji in the groin, a specialty of mine. He fell to the ground, groaning. Toshiro grabbed me and threw me over his shoulder.

"Now, now _princess_, don't break a nail!" Toshiro sneered on the word princess and then dropped me on my butt into a cell.

"Hey!" I protested.

"Sleep tight!" Toshiro blew me a kiss and then closed the door. The room they had locked me into was a dark and dank cell, with only a thin strip of window at the top of the wall on one side. The walls weren't bars, thank god, but solid walls, however the door was made completely made of bars.

_Stupid Shinigami clan! Gah! I hate them all! Especially Toshiro, he's the worst! Now I've got to think of a way to get out of here. Shit, it's only my first full day at my brother's house and already I've gotten myself into some deep crap. Hmm I wonder if there are any blind spots where they couldn't see me from the door._

"Hey! Dumb Shinigami! I haven't had any food! Did you ever consider that?" I called up once I'd found a spot. Sure enough they fell for my ruse, although I really was hungry. The person looked in my cell for me, but couldn't see me.

"Shit! I'm going to be in trouble if she's escaped!" The random person finally opened the doors and rushed into the cell. I ran out as soon as they were on the other side on the cell and closed the door behind me, locking it. I ran out of the dungeons as the poor person locked in my cell called for reinforcements. By the time anyone had heard, I was already making the worst wrong turn of my life. I was up on the battlement and the only way to escape was down, and there were no ladders.

"Kurosaki! Wait, don't do anything stupid," Toshiro panted as he ran up behind me. I must be going crazy because I thought I actually saw concern in his eyes. _Maybe he does like me, I mean if I like him and he likes me- nope! Not going there!_

Smiling, I measured the distance down in my head. I've survived higher falls, "Too late!" I mimicked Toshiro and blew him a kiss. Then I jumped over the wall, I tucked into a ball and rolled a little ways, then got up running.

At one point when I was running, I thought that I saw a tall pale man standing next to the path, but it must have been a hallucination. However soon after that I got a huge pain in my side. I made it home in no time and ran up the front stairs. It was way past dinner time and they all were probably wondering where I was.

"Where were you Karin, and why the hell do you look like you've been beat up?" My brother glared at me, but his eyes softened when he saw I was hurt.

"I went walking, and I was thinking about, um- how much I miss mom and dad and then I realized I had walked into the woods where these four guys practically ganged up on me and kidnapped me. What the hell was that about?" I gasped and I put my hand to my side. When Ichigo pulled my hand away, it was red with blood, "Woah, that must've happened when I ran away. I feel kind of dizzy Ichi-" I fainted before I finished the sentence.

**Toshiro's POV**

The old man was pissed to say the least.

"How could we let her escape?" Yamamoto said through clenched teeth.

"Sir? If I may?" I stepped forward, "The girl is stubborn, as I said previously. And if you didn't hear her before she was… taken away, she vowed revenge. Trust me, she'll be back." I looked around the room and saw the other captains nodding their agreement.

"Fine, but in the meantime I want you Toshiro and a squad of your choosing to go out and patrol the forest for the traitors. Since she will more likely be roaming around, we need to keep her safe. I know, we may not get along with the Kurosaki clan, but we cannot be responsible if something happened to the girl. Dismissed!" Everyone left and I sought out Matsumoto and Renji. Once I found them we went out on patrol.

"God, I can't believe one girl is giving us as much trouble as those three dirty-"Renji was stopped by a look from Matsumoto, "Er, two dirty traitors and Gin that is. Ya know Toshiro; the rest of us weren't really informed what those three former captains did to be exiled."

I sighed, it was only so long until they asked, "They planned to overthrow the Old Man. Aizen was the ringleader, and we have reason to believe that Gin was tricked in a way. As you know, Aizen was a master of illusions and could convince anyone of almost anything. He convinced first Tousen, then Gin to join him. However, we caught on in time and they were exiled. We have seen them around a few times. If Gin turns himself in, my father has been thinking about forgiving him as he hasn't tried to attack any division members," I finished and looked over at the other two.

_Right now all I want is to be alone to sort things out, this has been a confusing turn of events._

"Um Captain, don't you think it will go faster if we split up?" Matsumoto sensed my wanting to be alone. My mother died when I was very young and so Matsumoto assumed the role. She basically _was_ my mother when my father was too busy.

"Yeah, I'll keep going this way. You two go, wherever you want," I moved ahead, distracted now.

**Karin's POV**

I woke up in Ichigo and Rukia's bedroom. I sat up and looked around the room to see my new family all around. Yuzu was sleeping with her head on Jinta's shoulder. _I'll have to have a 'talk' with him about that later. _Rukia slept with her head on the bed, Orihime slept with Uryuu on the couch, they sure made a cute couple. Chad was sleeping in a chair with his head straight up, wait a minute, "Chad! Go to sleep, I'm fine!" I smiled at him.

Chad shook his head and grunted. I took that as a no then and stood up. I had to steady myself on the bed as I still felt dizzy.

"Well I need to take a walk, how long have I been out for?"

"Only about twelve hours. You came home last night around eight all beat up and freaked out," Ichigo's hard voice came from the living room. I walked in and saw Yoruichi and Urahara sitting with my brother. I nodded a greeting to them. They all looked worried as I sat down, "What happened to you?"

I told my story and I noticed the two "candy shop owners" look at each other.

"Karin, we don't want you to be out in the woods alone anymore," Urahara said.

Ichigo glared at the man and continued, "What we mean to say is that, we've received news from the Shinigami clan and they say that three former captains are out loose and apparently have no qualms about harming a girl. You will remain inside the house until they have been captured." The look Ichigo gave me left me no choice.

"Besides, you have to take it easy for a while. Orihime is very good at helping to heal wounds, but she is not capable of giving someone stitches. The only other person we know of who could do that is Tessai, and he is away right now. So in other words, you have a deep cut, most likely from a sword a the looks of things, and it is only wrapped up," Yoruichi smiled at me softly, and I noticed that Ururu had her head resting on the woman's lap.

_But I have to go and find those pearls. I know, I'll go to my room and climb down the tree outside my window._

"Uh no problem! I wanted to go up to my own room though, it's crowded in yours," I smiled and walked upstairs. When I got to the top I looked across the hallway at the painting hanging on the wall.

The painting was of the original Moon Princess in front of a tree holding her pearls. All of a sudden she smiled and moved to walk into a secret passageway in the tree. Maybe it was the blood loss that made me see that, but I think I knew where to find the pearls! That tree was in the spot where Toshiro and his band of bandits tried to kidnap me the first time.

"Good nigh- er morning Ichigo!" I called down then went into my room and over to the window. I took a breath and climbed across the windowsill and onto the tree branch. After shimmying down the tree I ran to the forest and the spot where I first met Toshiro. When I got there, I set up a simple rope trap and waited, purposely setting off one of his rabbit traps. While I waited, I self-consciously ran my finger through my hair and straightened my clothes. I was glad that I was changed into some short athletic shorts and a girlier t-shirt, I wanted to look nice for Toshiro… Wait. _Where the hell did that come from? _To my utter embarrassment I was blushing just thinking about him.

"Are you always looking for trouble?" I heard Toshiro sigh from across the clearing. He stepped forward into my trap. I sprung it and he flew into the air, upside down, "What the?" He spluttered.

"I need your help," I said bluntly. I knew where the tree was, but I needed him to help me get in. He crossed his arms and reminded me of a small child.

"Why would I help you?" He asked simply.

"Because," I swallowed, "You don't want this valley to be destroyed." I looked at him and saw his eyes opened in surprise.

**A/N: Holy long chapter! I changed a couple of things, and just added a little to the conversations as I saw fit. The fluff will be added in the next few chapters (In other words I'm adding it in with my revisions) Notes time!**

**Yes I included the traitors in the plot, I had to make it my own ;)**

**Urahara and Yoruichi became the messengers because that's how it worked out.**

**Yup. Karin Is still injured, but they bring it up next chapter, so don't worry!**

**Okay, so for right now, the story will be mainly from Karin's point of view, but Toshiro will get his thoughts put in too! So for now review, and if you don't review, I'll tell Kenpachi that you LOVE to fight! **


	6. Sacrifice

**A/N: Wow, another chapter. My third one written in two days! Once again I'd like to thank ****FlyingLikeAButterfly**** and ****Smitha ****for reviewing! It's nice to know SOMEONE is reading my story (: Anyways, I'm hoping that, while an itsy little bit of Histukarin has been starting to peek through, this is where it REALLY kicks in! Without further ado, I give you the sixth chapter!**

Disclaimer: Yet again I am the owner of nothing… YET! Cue evil villain laugh: MWAHAHAHAHA! … Er, so yeah.

"Are you always looking for trouble?" I heard Toshiro sigh from across the clearing. He stepped forward into my trap. I sprung it and he flew into the air, upside down, "What the?" He spluttered.

"I need your help," I said bluntly. I knew where the tree was, but I needed him to help me get in. He crossed his arms and reminded me of a small child.

"Why would I help you?" He asked simply.

"Because," I swallowed, "You don't want this valley to be destroyed." I looked at him and saw his eyes opened in surprise.

**Toshiro's POV**

I gulped when she answered my question. When she put it like that, of course I'd help her. Sighing I answered back, "Okay, but will you cut me down from here?"

"Um, about that. I never learned how to do that part," Karin _when did I start calling her Karin and not Kurosaki?_ Scratched her head and looked away sheepishly. I felt a vein pop in my forehead, twice in a matter of two days and all both because of this girl!

_Matsumoto never said you were in love with Karin, just that you were in love._ The voice in the back of my head reasoned smugly. I told it to shut up, "Okay, take the sword off of my back and just cut the rope near where you tied it." Karin looked at me, "What? Or did you actually think before you acted and grab a knife?" Her glare only confirmed my fears.

"Wait, when did you start carrying swords Shorty?" Karin asked, looking confused.

"Who are you calling short you midget? I'm taller than you!" I shouted, yet another vein popping.

"Yeah, but I'm a girl!" She stuck her tongue out in moment of what I now describe as pure Karin-ness.

"Sometimes I really want to-to… I don't know, but it's not nice. And I almost always carry a sword, but when I was sent to, uh, capture you before we were told not to bring them because we didn't want to harm you," I replied.

_So she doesn't have a sword. Now I have to protect her, from what I have no clue. Just that I have to protect her… wait what? Why did I just think that?_ I only had a moment's notice before I realized that Karin had grabbed my sword and was about to chop the rope, "Careful," I snapped, "Those are special swords to us, you only get one when you have been properly trained, and even then only if you have the correct criteria. Plus, you could have hurt me!"

"Yeah, well then this is going to _really_ hurt then!" Karin said and she severed the rope causing me to fall the ground in an ungraceful heap. I looked up to see Karin's grinning face and I groaned.

**Karin's POV**

I grabbed Toshiro's hand and pulled him up. In a moment of joy, I hugged Toshiro, which surprised us both. I was reluctant to pull away, I mean he was warm, and now I was certain that he was muscular. When I pulled away he was blushing, and I'm pretty sure I was too. "Thank you for helping me. Come on!" I said and grabbed his hand, showing him the tree from the painting, "There's a secret passageway somewhere- Aha! Found the switch to open it! I need you to boost me up so I can push that knot on the tree!" I gave my best puppy-dog face and Toshiro smirked.

"So the great Karin Kurosaki needs help reaching something? Okay then," Toshiro grabbed me and put me on his shoulders in one swift movement and I blushed. _Why does he make me blush? I mean I know when you like a guy you blush, but I-I don't like Toshiro! I don't _think_ I do anyways…_

"There!" I pushed the knot and jumped off of Toshiro's shoulders, "Let's go!" I took the lead as Toshiro brought up the rear. I was glad for the darkness to hide my blush. _Does he really have to walk so closely behind me? I mean seriously?_ A glow from up ahead made me stop dead in tracks, and Toshiro ran into me.

"What's the-" He started but I cut him off.

"Sh! There's light ahead!" I walked forward until Toshiro grabbed my wrist and pulled me back behind him. Scowling I ran ahead of him and into a big room. In one corner there was another passageway. In the center of the room there was a bed with a string of pearls lying on top of the perfectly made covers.

"What's the big idea… what is this place?" Toshiro trailed off as he came into the room, "I take it those are the pearls?" I had already moved over to the bed and picked up the pearls.

I looked at Toshiro, confused, "Now what do we do with them?" I think I saw another vein pop in Toshiro's forehead. _Hm, he should really get that checked out._

**At Kurosaki Manor:**

Ichigo walked up the stairs to Karin's bedroom, sighing. He hoped that she wasn't too mad about the whole situation. He knocked, but upon receiving no answer he opened the door. Karin wasn't in sight and the window was slightly open.

"DAMMIT KARIN! EVERYONE IN THE LIVING ROOM. RIGHT! NOW!" Ichigo ran downstairs.

"What is it Ichigo?" Urahara asked grimly.

"And where's Karin?" Yuzu looked around.

"Urahara, lead the way to the amphitheater by the sea. The idiot girl is either there or on the way," Ichigo said, "Everyone, be prepared for a fight. Tonight is the 5,000th full moon and we can't take any risks, especially with the rogue Shinigami on the loose. Let's go." All of the occupants of the Kurosaki household left, none of them smiling, except for Urahara and Yoruichi.

**At the Shinigami Stronghold**

"Sir, it looks like the Kurosaki girl got into the pearl's hiding place. She also managed to bring Captain Hitsugaya with her," Renji reported to Yamamoto.

"We must intercept Aizen and whatever followers he has. Bring our strongest men and women, the captains and those deemed to be fifth seatand higher. We cannot waste time," Yamamoto said and turned from a stunned Renji.

"Bu-but sir! You said you didn't want this Moon Princess to go through with the ceremony, right? When the sudden change in plans?" Renji looked bewildered.

"A joint effort from Captains Shunsui, Ukitake, and Kurotsachi into the legend of the Moon Princess cleared up some confusion we had before, now go!" Yamamoto dismissed Renji and prepared for the possible fight. Soon they were all ready to leave and set out for the same place as everyone else: the seaside amphitheater.

**Karin's POV**

To my ultimate surprise, Toshiro didn't explode, "For being the Moon Princess you are highly uninformed."

I scowled, "Sorry I just learned about this two days ago! The book said something like returning the pearls to nature, so isn't that what we should do? Mother Nature gave the girl the pearls from the ocean, didn't she? So it's simple, toss the pearls back into the sea." I smiled triumphantly at having figured it out myself.

"Yes, so follow this passageway I'm guessing. Let's go," Toshiro suddenly picked me up and put me on his back, my face turning a dark red.

"H-hey! What's the big idea? I can walk you know!" I sputtered and stuttered.

"I can move faster than you, we'll get there faster. Why, does being this close to a guy _bother_ you?" Toshiro smirked as he ran down the passageway to god-knows where. I put my face against his back to shield it from the wind and after a while we appeared at what looked like an amphitheater next to the sea where my brother and friends were looking ready to fight along with Toshiro's family.

"Wait Ichigo! I'm here and Toshiro is helping me! Hold on a second, I just have to do something quick that should have been done a while ago," I hopped off of Toshiro's back and over to the edge of the cliff and was about to throw the pearls into the sea when three strange men came out of the woods. At their backs were many strange men and women with oddly colored hair and what looked like bone masks on their heads.

"Aizen, and here I was hoping to make it through this ceremony without the interruption on a traitor," Yamamoto said with disgust.

"Well we didn't want to miss anything like this," The middle one with the brown hair and glasses said.

"Okay, then I'll just get on wi-" I started.

"Grimmjow, make sure that she doesn't pull any funny moves. Like throwing the pearls into the sea," The one called Aizen commanded a blue-haired man who moved towards me menacingly.

"Stay away from my little sister!" Ichigo launched himself from nowhere at the man. He was wielding a huge sword with white bindings. _I wonder where he got that sword from._

"Karin," Toshiro looked at me with the softest expression I'd ever seen from him on his face. It made my heart beat faster and my insides turn to putty, "You don't have much time. Throw the pearls into the sea now!"

I did exactly as I was told and threw the string of pearls into the sea. They made it halfway before coming back towards me. Confused, I threw them back again only to have the same result.

"Stupid girl, they will only stay in the sea on one condition. I hope for your sake you don't figure that out," Another man with silver hair and slitted eyes said.

"Gin! I thought you'd care more about this valley!" Matsumoto turned the attention away from me. _For my sake, surely he doesn't mean that _I _jump in too?_ I looked down and didn't see any rocks protruding from the surface of the water, _Well, I might as well._ I took a deep breath and jumped from the cliff, hearing many people yell my name behind me.

My last thought as I sunk in the freezing water, was that I was happy to be dying for a noble cause.

**Toshiro's POV**

_Oh my god Karin just threw herself into the water! _For a few seconds I couldn't breathe, and then at the same time Ichigo and I yelled for Karin.

Everyone stood speechless and motionless, nobody fighting anymore. It was Gin who broke the silence.

"Well, I was hopin' the girl wouldn't find out. Guess she was too smart," He looked almost ready to collapse from shaking as he crossed over to Matsumoto under the careful scrutiny of the other Captains. Matsumoto, once he got to her, buried her face into Gin's chest and was crying, so was the entirety of the Kurosaki household.

"AIZEN YOU BASTARD!" I heard someone scream, and realized it had been me, "Kurosaki, if you work with us, we will help look for Karin. If we hurry we-" I was interrupted by a sound from the sea. Everyone turned towards the noise and saw the water rising higher and higher. In the middle of the wave was what looked like a lion carrying Karin.

"Kon?" Ichigo was in disbelief. The lion- Kon-jumped onto the ground next to me and I grabbed Karin and held onto her. She coughed and her breathing seemed to be normal. I held her close to me and kissed her forehead when no one was looking. Aizen looked barely able to control his anger.

"Well it seems as if though I will have to try and regain my control of this valley at some other time. Espada and Arrancar, retreat. Let's go Tousen, Gin." Aizen turned around and his army followed him, except for Gin.

"Gin," Tousen turned his sightless eyes towards Gin and Matsumoto, "Are you not coming with us?"

"Naw, I think I'll stay here. Yer a bastard Aizen and I have to say, yer plans won't follow through," Gin wrapped an arm around Matsumoto, surprising everyone.

"Very well Gin. If you won't fight with us, then you're an enemy," Aizen walked into the forest with his horde following him, and this time no one stopped.

Karin started to move around in my arms, "Karin! Are you alright?" I looked at her and her eyes opened.

"Hey," Karin coughed, "What'd I miss?" She smiled weakly.

**IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT BELOW! \/**

**A/N: Okay, ANOTHER long chapter on my part! I did make the necessary changes and added some fluff, not much, but some. I'm sorry for any spelling/grammatical mistakes; nobody other than me reads these chapters before I post them! So, a sneak peak for what the next few chapters will be about and why it might take a while to post them:**

**It will more closely follow the Arrancar arc and all that follows it up until the Lost Substitute arc. However, there will be a few changes since Karin will be involved and Gin came back from being a traitor.**

**This mean I'm re-watching most of these episodes so that it will follow them as closely as possible (but with more of a normal-human world explanation for the hollows and such…maybe)**

**Establishing a few other details that I need to sort out beforehand that I haven't explained in previous chapters.**

**I like lists so that's why this is in list format (:**

**So until my next chapter gets put up: So long! Farewell! Review! Otherwise I'll tell Urahara that you love to do chores for free… and we all know he never runs out of chores.**


	7. Questions?

**A/N: Okay, I warned you that it would take me a while to figure out most of the details! At this point, this chapter is to mainly clean up a few facts that I, er, may or may not have fuzzed up in the previous chapters. I hope you enjoy this chapter!**

**Disclaimer: For the sake of tradition; I don't own Bleach or its characters.**

"Very well Gin. If you won't fight with us, then you're an enemy," Aizen walked into the forest with his horde following him, and this time no one stopped.

Karin started to move around in my arms, "Karin! Are you alright?" I looked at her and her eyes opened.

"Hey," Karin coughed, "What'd I miss?" She smiled weakly.

**Toshiro's POV**

"Karin, that's not very funny," Tatsuki sweat dropped, along with the majority of the people present.

"It's an honest ques- ungh!" Karin closed her eyes and her hand flew to her side. My eyes widened when I saw the blood seeping out through her shirt.

"Karin, what happened?" I pressed my hand onto the cut on her waist to try and stop the bleeding a little. She winced at the feeling of something pressing against her wound.

"Dunno," Another wince, "When I was running back after, uh, meeting with you guys," She glanced at Ichigo who saw past her play on words and was glaring at us. She chuckled at his overprotective look and the other captains and lieutenants all looked uncomfortable except for Byakuya and Soi Fon. She grimaced again then continued, "I didn't even realize that I was hurt until I got home."

"Old Man, what was the big idea hurting a little girl anyways?" Ichigo yelled at my father. I sighed, that boy was too hot-headed at times.

"I may be able to answer that question," Gin stepped forward. Yamamoto nodded and Gin continued, "Ya see, when Aizen heard about the girls coming, he wanted them for himself. So he sent out Ulquiorra to capture her. I guess he was only able to cut her in the side, you should consider yourself lucky lil' missy."

"Gin, since you stepped forward now and stood up today, you will be forgiven. However, I will not give you back your role of captainship as of right now if and until you have gained back all of our trust," Yamamoto said.

"Very well. If that's what it takes," Gin bowed then smiled at Matsumoto who hugged him between her… assets. _Better him than me, I can't believe my own subordinate does that to her captain!_

"I think that I deserve an explanation, don't you think so?" Karin asked. She tried to sit up, but I pushed her back down, choosing instead to prop her head up on my lap, "And who _are_ all of you people anyways?" All of the captains and lieutenants introduced themselves, along with Kenpachi introducing his third seat and fifth seats.

_Why does that man insist on showing those two off?_

"Isane, please bring our medical supplies so that I can tend to Miss Kurosaki's wounds," Unohana moved towards Karin and I.

"Since we have so many of you here, I shall explain our history and what it is all of you from the Kurosaki household need to know. It will take a while, so please make yourselves comfortable," Yamamoto said while everyone settled down.

**Karin's POV**

I got a little freaked out when the smiling woman, Unohana I think, came forward and started to unwrap all of my bandages after managing to pry off Toshiro's hand. He was handed a wet rag to wipe off his hand with and once he did that, he grabbed one of my hands and ran his fingers through my hair with his other.

"Karin, this might hurt quite a bit as we have to give you stitches and we don't have anything to numb the area with.

"Head Commander?" One of the captains, he looked like a stuck up suck up, stepped forward as well. All of the Captains had lined up by Yamamoto with the exception of Unohana who was tending to my injury.

"Yes Captain Kuchiki?" Yamamoto replied.

"I find it necessary before we move on to see what truly happened when Kurosaki went to find the pearls as it includes one of our captains," Captain Kuchiki stated. _Which captain is he talking about? Wait a minute, Toshiro is a captain?_

"You can call me Karin you know, I'm not really one for formality," I said. It seemed like they had forgotten about me until the stuck up guy brought it up again, "It's simple. When I figured out where the pearls were, I went to where I first met Toshiro," Here all of the captains held their breaths as if though waiting for something. When nothing happened, they looked confused, "I forced him into helping me and then we came here and you all know the rest."

"Very well, now into the story," Yamamoto said.

_When our families started our clans all of those years ago, they started out as friends and worked together. As time passed, our families had many misunderstandings and didn't see eye to eye on many things. Since then, The Kurosaki household has been more, er, laid back in the happenings of our valley._

"Hey!" Ichigo yelled.

"Shut up Strawberry!" Rukia punched Ichigo in the face.

_Moving on…. Meanwhile the Shinigami clan created thirteen squads to see over the land. _

_Everything was run with efficiency until many years ago when many of our higher seated officers were beginning to disappear. They had all run off after seemingly becoming part demon._

_All was peaceful after that, until on night about two years ago when our Squad Thirteen Lieutenant Rukia Kuchiki went out on a patrol near then Kurosaki household. There she was saved by Ichigo Kurosaki who helped her on her duties. When her brother and his lieutenant went to bring her back after two months, it was decided by our court system that she be executed. What we didn't know at the time is that all of the court members had been murdered and the orders came from a different source._

_However, at the time one of our captains, the captain of the fifth division Sosuke Aizen, was plotting to use the execution to kill the Head Captain. He left a note to his lieutenant stating that our tenth division captain, Toshiro Hitsugaya, had killed him. By using clever illusions he convinced everyone that he really was dead. His lieutenant then attacked Captain Hitsugaya who fought back. It was then discovered that Aizen wanted to gain control. _

_What was unknown at the time was that Ichigo had been training with two previously exiled captains Yoruichi and Urahara. He then came to our land to save Rukia. While Aizen was otherwise distracted, he came to our execution site and saved Rukia in the nick of time. Once Aizen arrived, he left with two other captains: Tousen who was the man with the glasses, and Gin._

Here Gin picked up the story.

_Tousen and I had no idea where he was taking us, but we followed. Finally we came to another castle far from the Shinigami castle. It looked like ruins from the outside, but once inside it was lavish. There were also strange people who called themselves the Arrancar, who wore masks made from bones on their heads. What we did not learn until later is that Aizen had been experimenting and had found a way to summon demons. Then he took these demons and he found a way to almost humanize them and that are how the Arrancar were created. He took the ten strongest Arrancar and named them his "Espada." He planned to use them to attack the Seireitei. So far he has failed._

"Any questions?" Yamamoto looked around.

"I do," Yuzu stepped forward. The whole time she had been hiding behind Jinta, "I thought that our two families didn't get along?"

"Up until this incident they didn't, actually when Captain Kuchiki and Renji went to bring Rukia back, they attacked and almost killed your brother. However, with Aizen betraying the Shinigami they have once again grown close."

I tried to sit up, much to Toshiro's and Captain Unohana's dismay, "I have two questions actually. The first is how is Toshiro, a boy my age, a captain when the captain closest to him in age is still easily five to ten years older? My second question is why are the swords so special? I understand that they represent the person receiving the sword is coming of age, but what about the sword itself?"

"If I may?" Captain Ukitake looked at Yamamoto for confirmation which he received.

"Actually, why don't we have _Toshiro_ answer that?" Yamamoto said, putting stress on Toshiro's name.

"It's Captain Hitsugaya!" Toshiro snapped and everyone seemed to be relieved for some reason. _I'll have to ask about the later_, "I'm a captain because I am considered a prodigy. I was able to get through all of my courses in record time and at such a young age. As for your second question, that is the exact reason that our swords are special, they are hard to break and signify that the wielder is of age. We call our 'swords' zanpakuto so outsiders can _hopefully_ understand their importance."

"Uh, I have a question!" Orihime raised her hand and some people chuckled.

"This isn't school Orihime, you don't have to raise your hand," Matsumoto fake whispered.

"Oh! Well I was just wondering, you mentioned captains and lieutenants, well how does that work?" Orihime asked.

"You can become a captain if you prove highly exceptional skills with your sword, or if you defeat someone who is already a captain. Thankfully the second method has only been used once with our current captain of the eleventh squad Kenpachi Zaraki. There are thirteen captains and thirteen squads. Each captain then chooses their lieutenants and their seated officers from there," Yamamoto answered back.

"Head Captain?" A women with black hair tied into two braids at the bottom and who wore a captains _what was the word?_ Haori came back with Yoruichi, "We lost sight of the traitors and the Arrancar. However, I would not deem it safe to stay much longer."

"Thank you Captain Soi Fon, Yoruichi. We will depart to our separate homes, however Captain Hitsugaya will bring a team to the Kurosaki household for protection, as long as that is all right with Ichigo?"

"It would be nice, I guess," Ichigo scratched the back of his head.

With that answer, Toshiro started creating his team, "Matsumoto, Renji, Madareme, Yumichika and Gin if that is alright with their captains." The people whose names were called looked for confirmation, received it, then started walking with us to go back home.

"Oh yes, and Miss Kurosaki?" Yamamoto called out as they started to leave.

"Yes?" Both Yuzu and I answered.

"Er, just Karin. You will begin training with Toshiro as soon as you can," Yamamoto said, "We will have someone come to check up on you occasionally, and if you can prove you have the skills, you will receive your zanpakuto. I do not find it hard to believe that you will be able to receive your zanpakuto in no time like your brother due to your background. That is all."

Unohana had finished with my sword cut during the story and now I was trying to stand, "What do you think you're doing?" Toshiro asked through clenched teeth as he tried to keep my down.

"Trying to get up and walk so I'm not stuck here all night," I replied quickly, "Wha- EEP!" While I was concentrating on getting up, Toshiro had picked me up bridal style. _What's the big idea? I could walk by myself, it's not like I got a leg chopped off! Then again, Toshiro is kind of cute and I'd really like to- no! I wouldn't like to do _anything _with Toshiro, except maybe play soccer… I guess, maybe, I kind of, you know, _like_ Toshiro. Not that I'd say anything!_

"Karin? Are you okay, your face is getting really red? You're not sick are you?" Toshiro looked down worried and I blushed even more. _Damn you Toshiro!_

"I'm fine!" I spat, "But I have a question for you. Why is it whenever I say your name the other captains and lieutenants seem amazed?" When I looked up again, I saw Toshiro looked, well, the best word to describe it is awkward.

"I have to act twice my age for the other captains to take me seriously, so I have them only call me Captain Hitsugaya. I guess that I didn't mind it so much when you call me by my name because I um," Toshiro started. I felt like he needed an interruption because there was something he didn't want to say.

"Because I'm your age and have no connection with your clan except for you?" I offered. Toshiro seemed relieved and nodded his head. By this time we were almost home and I sighed and relaxed. My last thought before I fell asleep was that I hope Toshiro was willing to put up with me at least long enough for me to figure out his feelings.

**Toshiro's POV**

When Karin asked about my name, I got scared that she had figured it out. _I hope she doesn't figure out that I like her like that!_ I sighed and noticed that we were almost to the Kurosaki house. I heard Karin's breathing deepen and even out and when I looked down and also noticed that Karin had fallen asleep.

"Kurosaki!" I called out softly. Ichigo turned around and looked at Karin and me, glaring.

"What?" He stopped and waited for me to catch up.

"Your sister fell asleep, do you want to carry her up to her room?" I asked.

"I can't fit through her door, it's too small. I guess we can get Rukia to show you up to her room when we get there. Now I have a question for you." Ichigo looked resigned now. _I wonder why?_

"What is it?" I asked warily.

"How do you feel about my sister?" I stiffened, _Oh god this is not good._

**A/N: I know, kind of a boring chapter until the end. But I needed to use it to clear things up a little bit and bring in the Bleach plot line. Now I know that some people may not like this, but I do have to change the canon plot line a little bit so that Karin is more prevalent. Sorry! I hope to update more often, but with my tweaking I have to take longer periods of writing time to figure it out. Now review or face the wrath of Hiyori's flip flop!**


	8. IMPORTANT! MUST READ!

**SUPER DUPER IMPORTANT AUTHOR'S NOTE!**

(Please read)

Okay, so I have been having second thoughts about this story that I've started. It isn't the actual plot I'm upset with (I actually really like it!), but a lot of the details and little mess-ups I've made are making me cringe every time I re-read them. SO Since it's not in my nature to leave ANYTHING incomplete, paired with the fact of which that I really do enjoy writing this story, I have decided to do some MAJOR work on this story. I hope to have the first couple of chapters fixed and re-uploaded by tomorrow night, so right now there won't be any new chapters.

What does this mean for my loyal readers? Well, basically you'll have to re-read the chapters written so far. I'm sorry, and there won't be a lot of plot changes, just some changed details that will affect the story later on.

Now on a different note, I'd like to give you a list of character pairings that I had in mind for this story. Most of them will have already been established, but a few of them will be developing with the plot. Here's the list of ALREADY ESTABLISHED couples:

Ichigo and Rukia

Orihime and Uryuu

Shunsui and Nanao

Gin and Rangiku

Urahara and Yoruichi

Here's a list of relationships to be developing with the plot that actually kind of matter. Without further ado:

Karin and Toshiro (Duh)

Yuzu and Jinta

Renji and Tatsuki (I kind of fell in love with this pairing)

Some others may be pointed out, but since the majority of the story is told from Karin's or Toshiro's point of view, they may only get a passing glance. Now I thank you all in advance for your patience (hopefully). Remember, reviews make the world go round! And if you don't review then I'm making you babysit Yachiru… AFTER she's eaten her weight in candy!

NEW DEVELOPMENT!

I finished editing the current chapters! So now I'm writing the next chapters! It went a lot faster than I thought it would…

So now I'd like to take the time to thank everyone who has reviewed, followed, or added my story to their favorites list. The support means A LOT to me. THANK YOU ALL ^^


	9. Minor Setback

**A/N: Just a reminder, I AM going to have to change some things around seeing as how I'm including Karin in the fight against Aizen. On to the apologies: I AM SO SORRY IT'S BEEN FOREVER! Now on to the story!**

**P.S: I don't own Bleach… I'm not a man**

**Toshiro's POV**

"Kurosaki!" I called out softly. Ichigo turned around and looked at Karin and me, glaring.

"What?" He stopped and waited for me to catch up.

"Your sister fell asleep, do you want to carry her up to her room?" I asked.

"I can't fit through her door, it's too small. I guess we can get Rukia to show you up to her room when we get there. Now I have a question for you." Ichigo looked resigned now. _I wonder why?_

"What is it?" I asked.

"How do you feel about my sister?" I stiffened, _oh this is not good._

"Um, uh well… You see, it's like this," To my horror I could feel my face getting warmer and redder, "I, well like her you know."

"You know that if you do anything to hurt her, I will kill you," Ichigo had only looked this serious back when he rescued Rukia from being executed. I nodded in response and looked around us, by now we were in the Kurosaki house. My squad was being shown to rooms by Chad and Uryuu.

"Okay Captain Hitsugaya, follow me to Karin's room," Rukia led me up a set of spiral stairs, and at the foot of the stairs was a room that Karin's sister was going into. _I wonder if her sister would tell me a little bit about Karin- no! Nobody… other than Ichigo, can know that I liked Karin like that!_ "Oh, and Captain?" Rukia looked at me and I tried to fight down the blush I could feel creeping up my face

"Yes?"

"You'll have to share a room with Karin I'm afraid. We need someone to stay with her, and the two of us and Yuzu are the only ones that can actually fit through the door right now. I have other arrangements to look over, and a few reports to send to my Captain and Yuzu is in no condition to watch her. I hope that these arrangements are okay?"

"I will be perfectly fine. Thank you Lieutenant," I nodded again and ducked into the room. It didn't really fit Karin's style from what I knew of her personality, but she had just moved in here a few days ago. I laid her down on her bed and tucked her in, then looked for a place to lay down myself. _Her entire floor is wood, and there aren't any rugs. This is going to be a long night._

"T-Toshiro?" I heard Karin groan in pain. Instantly I was up and at her side, "I don't feel good, I feel like I'm going to be sick."

"What do you mean Karin?" I checked her over and saw her side bleeding again. _Didn't Captain Unohana stitch up her wound?_ "Ichigo! Rukia! Get up here, now! Karin, this might hurt a little, but I have to pick you up and bring you to your brother, okay?"

"My side hurts too, why is it bleeding again- OW! WHAT THE HELL TOSHIRO?" I had picked her up and now I started my way down the stairs.

"You were distracted," I shrugged and continued towards the front door. By this time everyone but Yuzu, Ichigo, Orihime, and Uryuu were coming out of their rooms.

"What the hell is going on? I was just about to- Oh my god, Karin!" Tatsuki stepped forward then stopped herself, "Well what are you waiting for? Get her over to your medical people! We already know that we don't have the supplies here, and Urahara is a creep, so bring her back to the Shinigami. Hurry, we'll explain to Ichigo."

I nodded, "Renji you're coming with me," The five people I brought with me looked confused, "Well Gin and Matsumoto were just reunited, I'm not going to break them apart when I have no idea how long we'll be. Now let's go!" I turned towards the door and ran out with Renji following me.

"What do you know, you actually have a heart,' Karin laughed weakly. She didn't look very good, she had lost too much blood too soon. I picked up the speed and in a short amount of time Renji and I made it back to our settlement. We wasted no time going to the Fourth Division medical center where Unohana took Karin immediately.

"Go rest in your barracks for now, we'll probably be here for a few days," I sent Renji out then left to go find my father. To my surprise, he was already coming towards the medical clinics, "Karin informed me just an hour ago that her side was in pain. We tried to limit movement on the way back to their household, but it started bleeding again. She has apparently lost too much blood in such a short amount of time that she would start feeling sick and faint. Unohana just brought her in for more stitches and a blood transfusion, and she thinks her wound may have been infected."

"We need to start training her as soon as she's well again. She seems to have more common sense than her brother, and to have better strategizing, but she needs a lot of training yet. I am already having my second in command get me the materials to make her a zanpakuto. We are just going to have to throw her right in as much as that frightens all of us. For now, go see her. I can tell you care about her," Yamamoto said to me then turned, "Oh, and when she wakes up and Unohana agrees to release her, we will have a captains meeting with her present to discuss the future. Goodnight son." With that he left.

I too turned around and walked back into the medical wing just as Captain Unohana walked out of the room that Karin was being held in, "Ah Captain Hitsugaya, just the man I was looking for. Karin is stable. It was not in fact an infection, but poison that had most likely been on the blade that had cut her. We were able to get all of the poison out of her system and I am having Lieutenant Kotetsu redo Karin's stitches. When she says it's okay to go in, you may. I'm going to bed myself, goodnight." Captain Unohana too walked away towards her quarters and I waited outside of Karin's room.

_I have to sort out my feelings, and quick. I know that I like Karin, much more than I should actually, but do I like her like that? Either way, I have to tell Karin how I feel. It's been bugging me and I guess the best time is going to be while she's too injured to run away, or worse, hit me. I mean, she could have died and the thought of that just sickens me._

I don't know how long I sat there waiting for news about Karin, and thinking of ways to tell her. Eventually Lieutenant Kotetsu came out and told me it was alright to go in.

"However she is asleep right now, and she needs to stay asleep for a couple of hours, alright?" She gave me a pointed look.

"Alright and when do you think she'll wake up?" I asked. _I hope she doesn't get the wrong idea here._

Instead she just smiled softly and replied, "In a couple of hours. You may go in if you want now. Goodnight Captain Hitsugaya." Lieutenant Kotetsu turned and walked away, probably to clean up then go to bed. I took a deep breath then walked into Karin's room.

_She looks peaceful, and she's not giving that ridiculous scowl to anyone right now. Wait, her cut was on her left side, so why is she laying on her back? Oh well, I guess that I should catch up on sleep too, it's been a couple of days since I've had a good night's sleep._

I walked over to the bed and sat down in the chair next to it. Deciding to be adventurous, I grabbed Karin's hand and I kissed her forehead again. Then I settled down next to her and went to sleep.

**Karin's POV**

_I don't feel good: my left side hurts, my right side feels warm and has extra weight, and my left hand also feels warm. Am I dying?_

I opened my eyes and saw yet another unfamiliar ceiling. _How many times in a week is this going to happen to me? First my new room, then Ichigo's room, now this? Where am I anyways? _I looked around and saw a pink blob laying on my right side snoring softly, one thing explained. On my left I saw Toshiro sleeping with his head on the bed and he was holding my hand. My cheeks suddenly gained a bright red blush and a lot of heat. So there was two things explained, actually three things explained; it seemed that my stitches had been redone, and if that's the case then I'm in a medical room of some sort.

_I guess it's a good thing I've learned a lot about hospitals and medical centers, now I can maybe check my chart and see what it says._ However, much to my dismay, all I found at the foot of my bed was a sleeping Renji.

"It would seem that you already have many admirers you lucky duck! I'm guessing you have a lot of questions so I'll answer a few of them. My name is Lieutenant Kotetsu, but you can call me Isane. You are currently in the fourth division which is our medical facilities. Captain Hitsugaya brought you in last night and it had appeared that the sword that cut you had been poisoned. We were able to get all of the poison out and you are free to go once all of your admirers get up," Isane smiled at me as she walked around Renji and the pink-haired person.

"Thank you Isane, but I have a couple more questions. Who is this person with the pink hair, and when did these three get in here?" I gestured to the three people sleeping in my room and tried to sit up. Isane rushed over to me and helped me sit up in a way that wouldn't wake up the people on my bed.

"The girl is Yachiru, she's Captain Zaraki's lieutenant and daughter. Knowing her she either wants candy or to ask you to join the SWA. She wasn't here when I left last night but the third seat says when he came to check up on you at one point, she was climbing in your window. As for Toshiro he was here when I finished your stitches and I have no clue about Renji. My captain will be in shortly to check up on you as well. I'll see you around though, I have duties right now," With that Isane left the room.

I looked around and noticed that Yachiru's hair was in her face. I brushed it back and two more women walked into the room. One of them was Captain Unohana, and the other had an arm band that I now recognized as a lieutenant's armband.

"Hello, my name is Nanao Ise and I'm the lieutenant for the eighth division, you may call me Nanao if you want. I was asked by the Head Commander to bring you and Captain Hitsugaya to our meeting. Now I'm noticing you also have two other lieutenants in your room, and I guess I'll have to bring all of you there," The woman pushed her glasses up and mumbled something that sounded suspiciously like, "My captain doesn't do enough of his job, he is the one who's supposed to be doing this."

"Thank you Lieutenant Ise, Yachiru, time to get up! Toshiro, get up!" I nudged Yachiru and poked Toshiro in the forehead. They both jumped up, Yachiru in excitement and Toshiro in surprise.

"Yay! Sleepy girl is up! I want you to join the SWA! Yay!" Yachiru jumped up and ran out the door calling over her shoulder, "I gotta go find Kenny!"

"Well we had better get going, Renji! What are you doing here?" Toshiro looked only mildly surprised.

"I got worried last night that something bad would happen and didn't want Ichigo to kill me, so I came to check up on Karin," Renji yawned and scratched the back of his head, "Well let's go to that meeting then." I nodded and tried to get up.

"I wouldn't advise that Miss Kurosaki, your injuries have been healing steadily, and we've been able to stop all of the bleeding, but I would prefer you stay off of your feet for the rest of today," Captain Unohana smiled softly and I nodded.

"Then how am I supposed to get around? I don't want a wheelchair; they make me feel like an invalid," I asked.

"I'm sure Captain Hitsugaya or Lieutenant Abarai wouldn't mind carrying you around for now, right boys?" Captain Unohana turned her smile onto the two males in the room and Lieutenant Ise and I shared a small smile. _Wait a minute, she seems really familiar. Is that?_

"Nanao? I thought you were my father's lawyer's assistant!" I glared at her and she smiled back guiltily, "Let me guess, it was to keep an eye on my sister and I, and Rukia knew you too! That's why she never asked for your names!" I crossed my arms and scowled. Everyone else in the room smiled at my antics, and I scowled even more.

"I'm sorry Karin, but my Captain really was put in charge of your father's estate. They were close friends, and this way you father knew you would be taken care of," Nanao pushed up her glasses once again. While I was distracted again, Toshiro picked me up… again.

"I thought I told you to warn me before you do that!" I hissed at Toshiro, my side still hurt.

"You were distracted again," Toshiro said and shrugged his shoulders. We all walked towards what I guess was the meeting hall, and the others pointed out important buildings and landmarks along the way. Renji sure was pointing out a lot of drinking place, while Nanao preferred good places for reading. Captain Unohana told me she enjoyed finding quiet places to sit, and Toshiro actually stayed silent.

"We're here," Toshiro finally spoke up, "You're going to meet all of the Captains and Lieutenants up close. Please remember your manners."

I scowled at him once more before we walked in. What was inside waiting for me surprised the crap out of me, "Welcome Miss Kurosaki, to your new home for the new three weeks," Yamamoto spoke from his place at the front of the room.

_Wait, WHAT?_

**A/N: Whew! Well now that that's done! I'd like to once again thank you all again for putting up with my editing, and to thank everyone who has reviewed, followed or added this story to their favorites! And remember, REVIEW! If you don't, I'll tell Byakuya that YOU'RE the moving his koi fish out of his pond!**


	10. Training! part 1

**A/N: Quick note! In this chapter Karin is going to be going through her training with the captains/lieutenants. Each division that she works with will get about a paragraph or two along with her experiences from that day. So, this chapter will most likely be in all Karin point of view. Enjoy!**

**Karin's POV**

"We're here," Toshiro finally spoke up, "You're going to meet all of the Captains and Lieutenants up close. Please remember your manners."

I scowled at him once more before we walked in. What was inside waiting for me surprised the crap out of me, "Welcome Miss Kurosaki, to your new home for the new three weeks," Yamamoto spoke from his place at the front of the room.

_Wait, WHAT? _

"Aw, now don't you two make a cute couple!" Shunsui teased and I felt my cheeks heat up.

"But wait, what do you mean this is my new home for three weeks? I can't believe Ichigo would agree to something like this!" I think they might have taken my excitement the wrong way because the majority of the people present seemed to hold their breath, "What? I'm excited, not mad!" Those who had looked worried relaxed.

"Alright then, you will be studying with each captain and lieutenant, save for divisions three five and nine, for the first ten days then moving on to the Academy. You will start with my lieutenant and me today, and then move along in numerical order. The only exception is that on the tenth day you will train with the lieutenants from divisions three and nine. Any questions Miss Kurosaki?" Head Captain Yamamoto looked up at me.

"If she's anything like her brother, she'll have too many to get started today like we planned," The second division captain mumbled under her breath, however it was loud enough for all of us to hear. I stiffened then tapped Toshiro on the shoulder.

"Let me down, I can stand at least," Toshiro nodded reluctantly and set me down on my feet. I heard Shunsui mutter something to Nanao about why she won't let him hold her like that and I felt my cheeks burn again, "Once again, please call me Karin, after living in my house and hearing 'Miss Kurosaki' or just 'Kurosaki' whenever friends come over, it gets old. Besides, I'm not really one for formality," I smiled at the group in front of me.

"So she really is going to be just like her brother then. We can expect her to just ignore our titles then," The captain, Soi Fon I think it was, grumbled again.

"Captain Soi Fon, I'm only going to tell you this once. Do not compare me to my brother, we may be siblings but we are different people. Yes I have questions, if you were in my position and only had the knowledge I have, you would too. As for thinking that I will not call you by your proper titles just because I prefer to be called by my first name, that is just a sad assumption," I looked her way and managed to keep my features clear of emotions.

"Ahem, your questions Karin?" Head Captain Yamamoto asked pointedly.

"My first question is where will I be staying and getting clothes from, and my second question is may I take a shower and clean up first? I feel nasty," I pulled a face to hopefully get a few chuckles.

"Yes you may clean up in the first division ladies washroom when we get there. You will be staying in an Academy dorm room which Lieutenant Sasakibe will show you to after your training today. Everyone is dismissed!" Head Captain Yamamoto pounded his walking stick into the ground and the captain and lieutenants scattered.

"I'll visit you after your training. According to what I was told you will be training every day from seven am to four pm. I'll meet up with you every day afterwards and we'll grab something to eat. If I don't come to meet you, just come to my office and we'll meet up there," Toshiro told me on his way out the door.

"Sounds great! But why are _you_ offering to do all of this for me?" I smirked at Toshiro as he blushed, and tried to hold down a blush of my own. When he noticed my expression, he scowled through the pink.

"Shut up and do as you're told!" He turned around and walked calmly off with a rather stoic expression on his face.

"It seems that you were able to get quite the reaction from little Shiro! Usually he's only like that after I give him candy," A white haired man walked up to me and spoke thoughtfully, "I am Captain Ukitake by the way." He held out his hand and smiled at me, "Would you like any candy?"

"Now Jyuu, just because she's under the age of nineteen doesn't mean she wants any candy," Shunsui walked over to us with Nanao following him, "So Karin, how have you been? I see you've gotten awfully cozy with Captain Hitsugaya already. When Jyuu and I went to talk to Captain Unohana this morning, it looked like you two were holding hands while you slept. Adding Yachiru to the picture and I could see you two making cutest couple of the Gotei Thirteen, after my lovely Nanao and I of course."

"Captain, just because you and I are in a relationship, does not mean that you can start comparing us to other couples and vice versa," Nanao said, and I noticed I wasn't the only one blushing.

"Karin, the First Division is this way. Don't worry, you'll have plenty of time to socialize with the other captains and lieutenants after training hours. Follow us," Lieutenant Sasakibe motioned and the two started to walk away.

_Well, here goes nothing._

DAY 1 - FIRST DIVISION

"What we hope to teach you here today is strategizing and quickly assessing your opponent. Since Captain Unohana has requested that we keep your training today light, we will start you off by watching the two of us fight. In this notebook," Sasakibe handed me the notebook right when Head Captain Yamamoto brought it up, "You will write down any notes for your studies. Today you will write down any patterns you see us using and some of our noticeable weaknesses and strengths. We will be changing each of these things constantly so be on the lookout. Ready Sasakibe?"

For the next three hours I watched the two fight and wrote down all of the patterns I saw. After that, for the next hour and a half we went over the list and talked about what I saw and what I had missed. Then we had lunch and moved on to the next part.

"Now you'll learn a little strategizing by playing chess. You'll start off against Sasakibe then once you have beaten him five times you will play against me," Head Captain Yamamoto led us to a table with a chess board all set up on it. I spent my remaining time playing first Lieutenant Sasakibe, then the Head Commander.

"That is enough for today. You have beaten me once and that's all that I was looking for," Head Captain Yamamoto told me at 3:30 after a long afternoon of chess, "You may to your quarters, Sasakibe will show you the way."

Once we got to my room I showered and waited for Toshiro. While I waited I decided to explore my little apartment. There was one bedroom, a bathroom, and a small living space that included a stove, counter, and fridge. On the non-kitchen side of the counter there was a couch and coffee table.

He hadn't shown up by five and I was getting really hungry, "Now which way to Toshiro's office?" I muttered as I tried to find my way around the confusing encampment. Finally I just asked an officer and he sent me in the right direction, "Toshiro! Did you-" I trailed off when I noticed another girl sitting in his office which was being overrun with paperwork. The girl had black hair that was being held in a bun. She seemed to be sick and more than just a little fragile, "I'll just come back tomorrow, later!" I turned and fled out of the office.

I wandered around until the smell of food was really close and then I stopped and saw a familiar dining hall. Walking in, I realized that I had no idea where I could and couldn't sit, until Renji waved me over.

"Thank god! I didn't think I'd be able to sit anywhere, or find the dining hall for that matter. What do we get for food?" I asked looking around for anything edible. Then I figured out that we weren't that only ones at the table, "Oh, hey guys." I waved my fingers at the other people at the table which included: Lieutenant Hisagi, Captain Zaraki, and Yachiru.

"Where's Captain Hitsugaya? I thought he was supposed to be bringing you here," Lieutenant Hisagi asked around a mouthful of food, "Or at least that's what I thought I heard on my way out of the meeting."

"He was with a woman I'm assuming is his girlfriend, I didn't want to interrupt them," I said giving a small frown at his lack of manners.

"Naw, that was Hinamori, she's the lieutenant of the Fifth Division. She doesn't get out much anymore, so it's probably a good thing you left those alone. They're brother and sister pretty much, at least they were raised by the same nanny who they call granny," Renji explained and I felt myself relax. I spent the rest of the evening being introduced to many new people (mainly the higher-seated officers) before being escorted by Shuuhei (he insisted I call him by his first name) and Renji back to my rooms. Soon after that I set my alarm for 6 am and promptly fell asleep.

DAY 2- DIVISION 2

"Here we will be focusing only on your speed development and stealth. There will not be any time for idle chitchat. If you can talk then you are not pushing yourself hard enough," Captain Soi Fon glared at me and we started. For almost nine hours straight we essentially played a game of tag, where I had to catch and sneak up on Captain Soi Fon and Lieutenant Omaeda. We only stopped to eat for thirty minutes.

When I was finally released from my training to go back to my rooms, I think my legs felt like rubber. I was grumbling as I got out of the shower and waited for Toshiro to come, if he came, "If Captain Unohana found out about this, she'd have me skinned alive for moving around so much."

"What'd Soi Fon have you do?" Toshiro asked, suddenly leaning against my doorframe. I bit back a girly screech and glared at Toshiro.

"She made me chase her and her lieutenant around for nine hours! Let's go because I am starving!" I grabbed Toshiro's hand and we walked to the lunchroom… okay so I walked very quickly and dragged Toshiro behind me.

DAY THREE- FOURTH DIVISION

"I'm so glad to see you again Karin. Now I'll show you some simple healing potions and drafts, then later on you'll get a book on how to make your own," Captain Unohana and Lieutenant Kotetsu both smiled at me and we got started.

By the end of the day, I was even more tired that I was yesterday. I can do just fine when it comes to exercise and athletics, but books just make me tired, especially when you try to brew healing potions all day. As soon as I was home, I fell asleep on my couch, not bothering to change.

A little while later I was dreaming. _I don't want to admit it, but it was about Toshiro. Not that I'd tell anybody it was about him._ I dreamed he was carrying me because we were going on a date and I hurt my ankle. In my dream, I kissed him on the cheek, although it felt very real to me.

DAY FOUR- DIVISION SIX

"Today I will begin teaching you techniques with you sword. Head Captain Yamamoto has told me that your sword is now ready and is being delivered any minute. I will be teaching you the all of basics and a few more advanced moves that find to be useful when the time arises. Renji will be assisting me in teaching you," Captain Kuchiki told me when I reported in at 7 am exactly (Renji told me how much Captain Kuchiki was a fan of punctual people. Might as well get on his good side). Not long after that, my sword arrived.

It looked like a normal katana until you got to the hilt. The hilt was wrapped in orange ribbon, and what looked like a short chain connected to the bottom of the hilt and at the end of the chain was medium-sized metal ball painted to look like a pearl.*

"We will try to teach you how to take advantage of the attachment on the end of your zanpakuto," Captain Kuchiki told me before he started demonstrating techniques.

By the end of the day I felt like my arms would come off. However, Toshiro was already in my room with food, "I was getting strange looks from the other students so I came inside. Since I came to meet you yesterday and you were asleep on your couch, I decided we'd eat in today."

The details from last night were hazy at best, but I know for a fact that this morning I woke up in my bed, "Then why did I wake up in my bed this morning?"

"I carried you there and tucked you in," I detected a bit of pink tingeing Toshiro's cheeks, "I didn't want to risk you being sore when you had to train with Byakuya today, and I reset your alarm clock. If you're done with questions, there's food on the counter for you," Toshiro turned his attention away from me, and onto his food. I scoffed then walked over to the kitchen to get my food. After settling down on the couch with Toshiro I decided to be brave and ask the question that's been bugging me.

"Is Hinamori that girl I saw you with on my first day here? I asked Renji and that's who he thought it was," I asked, avoiding eye contact. Out of the corner of my eye I saw Toshiro stiffen a little, then attempt (and fail) at trying to relax.

"Hinamori is my adopted sister. We used to be very close, until she started going to the Academy. She was able to start two years before me and didn't have the chance to visit often. One time while at the Academy she was on a mission that had gone wrong and Aizen saved her life. After that she worshipped the ground he walked on. When she became his lieutenant, she told me she had 'fallen in love with Captain Aizen.' She was… badly shaken from Aizen's betrayal, she hasn't been the same since. She was in a coma for a long time, and now she's been asking me to spare Aizen's life. I can't do that, not after what he did to her!" Toshiro was trying to remain emotionless, but tears were threatening to escape, "I have sworn to kill Aizen, and I will." I reached over and grabbed Toshiro's hand.

"I believe you will, but for now you need to focus on Hinamori getting better," I smiled at Toshiro in what I hoped was a gentle and caring way, and when he looked at me, he remained emotionless, but his eyes gave away his hurt.

"Thank you for the advice," He replied.

"It's what friends," I tried not to flinch at that accursed word, "do for each other. Now eat up so you have enough strength to beat the bastard!" I said and handed Toshiro back his food. He almost smiled and began to eat once again. When he was done he left because he had to go and finish up more paperwork for the night. Once he was gone I turned in for the night, tired out after a _very_ long day.

If only I knew what tomorrow held in store for me.

***I will attempt to draw what I mean, but it might not happen… I'm not the best artist. But I shall try!**

**A/N: Another chapter! To avoid the chapter getting too long I decided that the next chapter will finish up training with the captains, and begin her time at the Academy. For now please review! And if you don't, I'll Tessai that you don't like his cooking! Bye!**


	11. Karin's Long Day

**Karin's POV**

DAY FIVE- DIVISION SEVEN

"You want me to stalk Toshiro?" I asked Captain Komamura in disbelief.

"Yes, and you will observe him for an hour then attempt to sneak up on him. If you can complete this task then you will move on to the next 'target.'" Captain Komamura replied. He had spent the morning teaching me how to track people. Personally I thought that he had to be part wolf because he was so hairy and unnaturally good at finding people.

"Alright, I think that I can do that," I turned to leave but paused when Captain Komamura added another stipulation to my already difficult task.

"And as of right now, all members of the other divisions are to be thought of as your enemies. You are not to be spotted by any of them, and I will find out if they do spot you. Now go," Captain Komamura dismissed me and sat down at his desk.

_All right, let's do this! I already know where Toshiro's office is, so now I just have to get there without being seen. Then observe Toshiro for an hour. Then try to sneak up on him and pretend to kill him. This is not going to be easy._

I sighed then walked completely out of the seventh division. I crept along the bushes to stay out of view then climbed up onto the rooftops and went from there. Luckily since I am of the shorter variety of people, I was able to run across the rooftops without being seen.

When I finally arrived at the tenth division offices, I was luckily able to find a tree that was partially resting on the rooftop and I climbed down. Once I was halfway down, I scrambled back up a little until I was adequately covered.

_Who would have guessed that this tree was right outside of Hitsugaya's office? Now I just have to observe him for an hour! _

One hour later…

_All he does is paperwork! He hasn't gotten up once at all! Not to go to the bathroom, or get food, or anything! Then again… I have only been watching him for an hour. Let's go pretend to kill Toshiro!_

I climbed out of my hiding place after making sure the coast was clear and snuck into his office the only way I could think of: through his window. The window was slightly opened already, and for some reason Toshiro didn't have a screen in his window. I eased the window open quietly and slowly then quickly climbed in. I was able to walk across the room without him noticing.

_He is really engrossed in his paperwork. I guess I don't blame him; he does have a lot of work to do. I know! I'll treat him to a game of soccer tonight after I get done training! That should get his mind off of Hinamori too. Hmm, now I just have to find a soccer ball. I bet he'd be a really good soccer player since he has to be in great shape to fight. He might actually present a challenge to me. Gah! No more soccer fantasies, it's time to get down to business._

Once I was right behind Toshiro, I put my hands over his eyes and yelled into his ear, "GOTCHA!"

"WOAH! WHAT THE HELL KARIN?" Toshiro yelled and I saw that little vein pop out again. I put my hand over his mouth, took out a red marker and drew a red line across his neck.

"Now pretend to be dead when Captain Komamura's scouts come to see if I finished my mission. Remember, your dead so no talking. Bye!" I left a bewildered Toshiro sitting in his office and I climbed back out the window, "Oh! And make sure to meet me at my room at 4:30 pm sharp! Bye."

I ran back to the seventh division as fast as I could and reported back to Captain Komamura, "It seems that you still have plenty of time left for this last task. You will have to do the exact same thing, except you must sneak up on Captain Soi Fon."

"I hate to sound whiney, but I don't think that's the best idea. Captain Soi Fon doesn't exactly like me. In fact, I think that Captain Kuchiki likes me more than she does," I scratched the back of my head.

"Very well then, you will go after Captain Kuchiki. There will be one change to your challenge though; this time all officers will be on the lookout for you and have orders to attack when you're sighted. I would advise that you bring along your zanpakuto just in case. I wish you good luck."

With that dismissal I walked out of the Captain's office and into the city. There were patrols walking around and it seemed like they were actually enjoying this as much as I was. Deciding that the safest route to would be the rooftops, I shimmied up and crouched. Very soon I reached the Sixth Division offices which were now heavily guarded.

_A challenge, huh? I like things better this way! Let's see I remember Ichigo saying something about sewer systems when I asked him about how he got around… Nah, I would never stoop that low. I know! I could disguise myself as a different Shinigami member, then they wouldn't know who I am. Or…_

Five minutes later I was still on my previous perch, however that was going to change very soon. While observing the guards around the Sixth Division offices, I noticed that the only guards along the back were constantly moving around and walking to observe different viewpoints. There were only two guards back there, so I could get past them, I could slip in!

That portion of the plan worked just fine, until I was actually inside. There Renji and Byakuya were waiting for me.

"Hm, that worked out better than I thought it would. Sorry, but I guess I underestimated you," Renji apologized with a smile.

"No problem, I thought that I'd be caught by now too. So Captain Kuchiki, if I can just draw a red line on you ne-" I was cut of due to a swords being drawn and held against my neck.

"You are too hasty, that will be your downfall in a battle. Now," Byakuya took my marker and draw a red line across my neck, "Report back and tell him you have failed."

Nodding, I turned and walked out of the office. Leave it to the stuck up guy to be my downfall.

"I see," Captain Komamura said after I reported back, "You actually passed that one. If you would have been able to defeat Byakuya then we would all need to be cowering in fear. You are free to go as it is almost four o'clock."

Once again I left the Seventh Division offices with promises to Captain Komamura that I would come and visit occasionally.

_I can't believe Captain Kuchiki didn't even flinch when I walked in, not once of his muscles moved the entire time until he surprise attacked me! Even then his facial expression never changed. It's funny, he holds himself the same way that Rukia did when Renji attacked us… I never did figure out what that was about, I should go ask Renji. He should be able to just answer that simple question, besides I don't want to interrupt Toshiro any more than I have to._

I walked back to the Sixth Division and was surprised to see Byakuya standing outside holding my marker still, "Oh thank you Captain Kuchiki. I can't believe I forgot my marker." I smiled and started to walk away until Byakuya's voice stopped me in my tracks.

"I find it rather odd that you haven't used our relationship to gain any favors," Byakuya said, stopping me in my tracks.

"Relationship? That's right! I forgot that you're Rukia's older brother, so that makes us brother and sister in law. Very well, I'll remember to send you a Christmas card from Yuzu and I. I have to get going though sir, I have a meeting. Goodbye!" I waved then walked away as fast as possible.

_HOW THE HELL DID I FORGET THAT RUKIA'S BROTHER IS BYAKUYA? I'm an idiot, but I'm also an Idiot who has to meet Toshiro at my apartment in an hour and I still need to find a field and a soccer ball._

Finding the field was no problem, and I even found some posts to make a goal area with. The problem I was having was finding a ball. Deciding to give up, I walked past the Thirteenth Division and noticed two small children playing with a rubber ball. If I had to guess, the two were either twins, or siblings very close in age.

_Close enough!_ "Hey guys, I have a question for you," I knelt down to their eye level and smiled.

"Sure, what is it?" The first one asked.

"May I use your ball? A friend and I wanted to play a game of soccer and we don't have one. You can come and watch us play if you wanted to, maybe I'll even teach you guys how to play!" I smiled and hoped the two would go for it.

"Alright, but our dad has to come with us, Dad! There's a soccer game tonight, may we go?" The second one yelled into the building. To my surprise, Captain Ukitake walked out.

"Sogyo, Kotowari, I hope you're not bothering anyone. Hello Karin! Do you happen to be involved with this soccer game they're talking about?" Captain Ukitake turned and smiled at me.

"Yes, I wanted to borrow their ball and told them that they could come and watch just to be sure that I wouldn't steal the ball," I smiled back.

"Well we'd love to come and watch, but we can't. You can still use the kids' ball though, and good luck to you," Captain Ukitake said, handing the ball to me while the kids groaned.

"Thank you Captain Ukitake! I have to go grab Toshiro, I told him I'll meet him at my room in five minutes. Thanks again!" I waved and walked away towards my room. When I got to my room, I saw Toshiro leaning against my door, an emotionless expression on his face.

"What did you want Karin?" Toshiro asked and pushed himself off of my door as I walked up.

"I have a surprise!" I smiled. Getting no reaction out of him, I frowned, "You should smile. I don't think I've seen you smile once since I met you! Now let's go, your surprise is back over by your office, let's go." I turned and started to walk away, knowing Toshiro would follow.

_He may try to act older than he is, but he's still a teenager. Besides, he's probably mad I'm not telling him what the surprise is._

Just as I guessed Toshiro was following me, still expressionless. When we got to the field, I was satisfied to find that Toshiro didn't know my plans.

"What is this?" Toshiro asked confused.

"A good old-fashioned game of soccer, one on one!" I smiled and dropped the ball on the ground and faced Toshiro, "First one to five wins! Usually it's ten. But I have a feeling that this is going to actually challenge me. Let's go!" I took off towards my end of the field, and I swear I saw Toshiro _almost_ smile out of the corner of my eye before he was running after me.

For the first ten minutes we were chasing each other around, trying to get the ball back for the other one. Nobody actually scored until Toshiro finally got around me. By twenty minutes in we were both panting and sweating.

At twenty five minutes in, I scored my first goal. After that if one of scored, the other scored almost right away. We were both having fun and joking around at forty minutes when _it_ happened. _It_ was when I was dribbling the ball towards the goal and Toshiro tried to get in front of me to steal the ball. Normally this wouldn't be a problem, but when our feet tangled, we both went down in a heap of arms and legs. We both lay in our own dazed states until we noticed something.

The forward momentum we had from running had made us do somersaults as we fell and I ended up lying on by back. Toshiro's legs were still tangled with mine and he had landed on top of me. Our bodies were pressed to each other's until we noticed, then Toshiro lifted his weight off of me, but didn't move any further than that. My heart stopped for a few seconds, then went into overdrive to make up for those few seconds. I'm pretty sure that Toshiro could feel my pulse since his chest was right up against mine.

I gulped, "Um Toshiro?" then I was distracted because I then chose to realize just _how_ close to each we were, and that Toshiro's face was an inch, maybe two inches away from my face.

Toshiro seemed to knock himself out of his daze and got up,"Sorry about that, let's go get dinner." He held out a hand and helped me to get up.

_Does it make me a bad friend if I really wish that he'd kissed me? I really do like him... damn I need to get myself figured out. This is not Karin Kurosaki; the tough girl who doesn't cry so her family doesn't worry. if they saw me now, they'd freak out from me being so out of character._

After dinner, Toshiro walked me back to my room and I invited him in.

"You know, we know each other pretty well, but we don't really know about each other's past," I told him as I made some tea, "I'll go first, and if there's anything one of us wants to leave out, we'll respect that." Toshiro nodded and I started. I told him everything that seemed important from my past, including my promise to be strong and not ever cry after my mother's death, and how I've never broken that promise.

When it was Toshiro's turn to share, he surprisingly opened up quite a bit. He told me how his father was so busy that most of the time it was just his granny, Hinamori and him. He told me how he was the youngest captain in his clan's history and had the quickest record for getting through the Academy, "Without and special training like you're getting," He teased. To which I promptly smacked him in the shoulder. We stayed up late talking and getting to know each other better, and as we sat on the couch, I slowly fell asleep. In my dream, I felt Toshiro bring me to my room, tuck me into bed and kiss me goodnight on the forehead. I smiled and drifted off into a different dream.

**A/N: I told you she'd have a long day today! Holy shiitake mushrooms that was a long chapter to write, fun, but long. So I guess I lied when I said this chapter would wrap up captain's training... sorry! So a few notes:**

**I had to have tracking and long-time observance as a training day somewhere and figured, since Captain Komamura is a wolf (I looked it up, he is a wolf) he would be the best candidate! **

**I also added the encounters with Byakuya because as I was writing this chapter that really did just cross my mind, I mean HOLY MONKEYS! I had never thought of that before! Plus it just seemed like something Karin wouldn't quite figure out since she doesn't know much about Rukia's past.**

**So yeah! NOW REVIEW! Otherwise Orihime is going to have a new person to test- er I mean willingly try all of her new creations. All kinds of reviews welcome, flames not preferred but tolerated. Ta ta for now! **


	12. Training! part 2

**Just because I haven't said it in a while: I do NOT own Bleach**

**And I'd like to say thank you to those of you who have reviewed my story when, quite frankly, no one else has. So here's to: First and foremost ****FlyingLikeAButterfly**** who was my first reviewer, and also to ****Smitha****, ****animeluvv679****, and the guest reviewers. I'd also like to thank all of you who have added this story to their favorites list or are following this story. I must say, reviews DO make the world go round! And since I'm already rambling I might as well do announcements now! Okay so I'm going to be skipping all of the filler arcs (trust me, it makes things easier on ALL of our brains) and will be having a kinda-sorta time lapse once Karin gets into the Academy (Which will be next chapter, this chapter she just meets her teacher who is a surprise!). **

**~IMPORTANT NOTE!~**

**This fanfic will most likely only have a few chapters left to it! I am **_**really**_** sad it's ending soon, but just remember what that means, REVIEW WHILE YOU CAN! I don't even mind if its five years after this story was posted, I always love to get reviews!**

**Now to the story!**

**Karin's POV**

DAY SIX- DIVISION EIGHT

"Today Captain Kyoraku is going to teach you how to fight with more than just your one zanpakuto. He is one of few who actually fight using two zanpakuto and believes that you have the potential to at least learn about. Meanwhile I will be in our office doing the paperwork he has been avoiding. If he becomes too difficult to handle you will find that hitting him with a book works just fine. I'll check up on you later," Lieutenant Ise told me when I walked into the Eighth Division this morning. Then she walked into what I was guessing to be her office.

"How cruel my lovely Nanao is to me!" Captain Kyoraku moaned dramatically and I had to resist the urge to kick his face into a wall. _It's not my fault that that is what was ingrained into my life whenever a grown man acted like a child._

"Captain? If you want to make Lieutenant Ise happy, why don't you start off by training with me really hard and then going and doing paperwork for her?" I offered some advice.

"That's a great idea Karin! Let's go train then!" Captain Kyoraku swept out of the room and I followed him to his training area.

For the first hour I tried getting used to having a blade in both hands, and when that didn't work out well, we sat and talked for a bit about the certain style it take for a person to fight with two swords. While we talked I was examining the metal ball painted like a pearl when I noticed that there seemed to be a crack all the way around the middle of the pearl. I finally figured out that you could take the pearl apart by twisting it and found the inside surprisingly empty.

"An empty pearl hm? It is actually a great design. If I may?" Captain Kyoraku gestured towards my zanpakuto, which I gave to him, "The sword itself is perfect for a person of your size. The metal ball will help in any situation where you cannot draw your zanpakuto, and instead just swing this at your enemy. Now having this container, you could put small smoke bombs inside, or even a switchblade. Why don't we see if we can try finding you one and I'll teach you how to throw it."

Once we got ahold of a switchblade, he tried to teach me how to throw it. After a few failed attempts it was decided that the switchblade was only to be used for defense and last resort attacks and not for throwing.

After training I went home and ate by myself there. I had gotten a message from Toshiro saying that he and Renji were being sent to check in at my house and report on my life in general. They'd be gone for quite a few days from the sounds of things, at least until I started at the Academy.

DAY SEVEN- DIVISION ELEVEN

I knew that something was different from Captain Zaraki from the moment I stepped into the Eleventh Division and he yelled, "ATTACK!" and he launched himself at me. The entire day was summed up into two words: Fighting and pain.

When I got home I soaked in the hot bathtub while eating some instant noodles I'd picked up, then went to bed, exhausted after spending nine straight hours fighting. I wasn't even allowed to eat until I got home... and even then it was the usual instant noodles. When I was finally done taking care of my aching muscles and when I was ready for bed, it was almost one in the morning. _You know what they say, time flies when you're having 'fun.'_

DAY EIGHT- TWELFTH DIVISION

"Welcome Miss Kurosaki. Captain Kurotsuchi and I will be showing you how to identify different poisons and how to create them. Then my captain wishes to run an experiment on you because he has never met a Moon Princess up close before," Lieutenant Kurotsuchi told me as she showed me around the Twelfth Division.

I grimaced when she brought up the Moon Princess tidbit, hoping people had forgotten about that, "Alright, I'll go through the poison course, but I refuse to go through any experimenting!" As we were walking, I ran into a boy with brown hair tied into a ponytail at the front of his head making him look like he had a horn.

"I'm sorry!" He dropped a bunch of sweets on the ground and scrambled back up after collecting them all and scurried away.

"Alright then?" I questioned to no one in particular.

By the end of the day I had no desire to _ever_ go anywhere near the Twelfth Division for a very long time. I had only narrowly avoided being practically dissected and I had a feeling Captain Kurotsuchi would try again.

When I got back to my room, there was a girl waiting in front of my door. To my surprise, it was Hinamori, "Hello! You're Hinamori right? Toshiro was telling me so much about you." I smiled and tried not to kick myself; I hated acting like a preppy girl.

"Yes, and are you Karin?" She smiled back and she reminded me of Yuzu in the fact of which that she was very likeable.

"Yeah, that's me. Do you want to come in and have some tea Hinamori?" I asked as I stepped into my room. When I opened the door and a note fell to the floor. It was from Shuuhei and Kira asking if I was going to show up to the dining hall at all tomorrow night, apparently they were worried about me. _I guess I have been sort of reclusive, haven't I? I really should go…_ While I was thinking, Hinamori nodded then followed me inside.

"I just came to meet you, Shiro was talking about you a lot the last time I visited him. Actually that's why I'm really here. You see, I feel that Shiro and I are growing apart, and it's because of you. So I'm going to ask you kindly just once to please leave him alone. You're only fueling his want to go and kill my Captain Aizen and I can't have both of the men I love fight each other. I'm going to go now, goodbye," Hinamori finished her little speech then left me speechless in my kitchen, still holding the pot of tea I had been making her. She had said the whole thing almost like a robot; she didn't really show emotion until she brought up Aizen.

"We're just friends," I muttered to myself about five minutes after she had left.

_Even though I wish something was going on with us. Oh well, there's nothing to do about it tonight. I'll just talk to Toshiro when he gets back._ I cooked up some instant noodles, ate them then went to bed.

DAY NINE- THIRTEENTH DIVISION

"Today I will be teaching you how to defend yourself using both your sword and your zanpakuto," Captain Ukitake told me over a cup of tea the first thing in the morning. I'd heard from somewhere that he didn't really care to fight kids, and tries not to fight in front of kids if he can help it.

"Alright, whenever you are ready I'm ready," I told Captain Ukitake who nodded in reply. After we finished our tea his third seats, whose names I learned are Sentaro and Kiyone, went into their training dojo and they walked me through the moves. We worked on the moves until about one in the afternoon then stopped for lunch.

"So, do you have any questions about your training program?" Captain Ukitake asked me while we waited on the food.

"Actually I do. Why am I training with the captains first, and then going to the Academy?" I asked as the food was brought out by, "Captain Kyoraku? What are you doing here?" I think I actually tilted my head like a confused dog.

"I'm bringing food! And to answer your other question, you're only going to the Academy so that the teachers can correct any stances that you may be doing wrong. As of right now you are the equivalent of an unseated officer with the information you have. Plus they will be able to make sure that you're practicing every day," Captain Kyoraku winked at me and I have a feeling he knew I wasn't practicing at night. I was going to start doing that tonight. He set all of the food onto the table and I grabbed a plate of, well, I don't know. I was so hungry and so sick of instant noodles that anything sounded good right now.

"I have one more question, who am I training with tomorrow? I've been to all of the divisions with both their captain and lieutenant," I asked and started to dig into my food.

"Ah, you will be working with Lieutenants Hisagi and Izuru. Now, shall we get back to work on your defense?" Captain Ukitake asked after we were done. I nodded and we walked back to the dojo to work my defense. I had never realized that there were so many defensive moves that you could use that also doubled as a set-up for attack moves. Plus with Captain Kyoraku there, they were able to teach how to defend myself against two opponents. A few hours later I was sweaty and tired, and completely ready for dinner with my friends. _With real food and everything!_

"May we escort you to the dining hall?" Captain Ukitake asked with poorly concealed worry.

"Uh sure, I was supposed to eat with Lieutenants Hisagi and Izuru tonight anyways. Why, what's the matter?" I replied.

"Well, there have been reports of some of the Arrancar lurking about and we don't want to risk anything. We don't know if they're still interested in you and your sister, so we are to be keeping both you under constant observation," Captain Kyoraku told me truthfully. He sheathed his zanpakuto and started to walk out of the dojo with Captain Ukitake and me following him. We walked towards the dining hall and I voiced my thoughts aloud.

"Huh, what do they want with me in the first place, I mean I'm just a teenager," I trailed off as the dining hall came into sight, "Thank you for walking with me here, and I look forward to tea with the two of you in the future. Have a good night!" I walked into the dining hall, completely missing the conversation Captain Ukitake and Captain Kyoraku had next.

* * *

"She doesn't appear to realize how much she means to everyone she meets. Everyone she meets gets a strong feeling because of her, and it's usually positive. So many of our higher-seated officers have already been impacted by her short stay here, I mean look at Lieutenants Hisagi, Abarai and Izuru. They have practically begun thinking of her as a little sister along with most of the other captains and lieutenants. Captain Kuchiki _is_ her brother in law, and even though he despises Ichigo, he seems to enjoy Karin's company. What she has not realized is that by having so many powerful friends and family members, her and her sister have immediately been put into danger, their abilities not even taken into consideration," Captain Ukitake said to his friend, who nodded in return.

"Plus I believe that I heard a rumor about your lieutenant and Lieutenant Matsumoto making plans to add a feminine touch to Karin's and Yuzu's lives since they grew up with only they're father and brother for influences. Now that's going to be interesting!" Captain Kyoraku said with a gleam in his eye, "But, we should go and get our own food now."

* * *

"What's been up Karin?" Shuuhei asked me as soon as I sat down next to the two of them. They passed the food over to me and I piled as much as I could onto my plate.

"Training, training, and practicing; I've been so tired the past couple of nights I haven't really had a chance to have real food. How about you guys? What's been new in your lives?" I asked before swallowing a large mouthful of food.

The two of them laughed, probably at my poor eating habits, then launched into stories about what had happened to them over the past couple of days, "But the really strange thing though, is that the Arrancar are sneaking around your house too and not just here. So it appears that your family is coming over here too, although they will be staying in the residential wing. Apparently they don't trust having such a small guard duty at your house, and we can't send anyone else, so they're packing up and coming here. They'll be here in a couple of days actually," Shuuhei told me and I smiled.

_This is going to be great! I haven't seen my family in over a week, I was actually missing them all, even Ichigo._

"Karin? You still in there?" Kira asked me. I must have been blanked out for a minute or two, because I didn't respond to what Kira had said to me, "As I had asked before, we need you to stretch before you come in tomorrow so that you don't pull a muscle. We won't have time to stretch because we're going to try and fit in as many hand-to-hand combat techniques as possible before our time tomorrow is up. Afterwards we're supposed to bring you to meet your teachers at the Academy. It's almost the end of a year, so you will actually be graduating with this group of Soul Reapers."

I spit out the water I had been drinking in alarm and looked around bewildered before I managed to voice my thoughts, "WHAT THE HELL?" I whisper-yelled at the two smiling men sitting at my table.

"Well in Japanese Shinigami means Death God, or like a grim reaper. So a bunch of the Shinigami have started calling ourselves Soul Reapers as a joke. Mainly its the lower-ranked and unranked members of the Gotei 13," Shuuhei explained. I nodded and stood up, done eating.

"Well I'm going to bed, I'm beat and it sounds like I have a long day tomorrow. See ya later guys," I waved and walked outside. Looking around, I noticed that there were a lot of people milling around, all seeming to be from the Eleventh, Fourth, and ThirteenthI made it back to room just fine, and set my alarm for half an hour earlier than usual. Then I drifted off to sleep.

_I was back at the seaside amphitheater, but this time I was alone or so I thought. Looking around, I noticed that there was one change: The stonework no longer held any seating, save for a large throne. In the throne was the brown-haired man, Aizen._

"_Ah, how nice of you to join me Karin. Tousen, bring in the prisoner," Aizen called over his shoulder, not taking his eyes off of me. I was beginning to work up the nerve to ask why I was here, when Tousen brought in Toshiro who was bound and gagged. I felt a scream rip out of my throat and my knees go weak, "Now Karin, I do hope you'll behave. As you've only been a problem since you got here, I'm afraid I'll have to punish you. However, because I need you alive, I'm going to force you to watch while I kill someone you love," Aizen now had Toshiro, wide-eyed and trying to free himself, kneeling on the ground in front of him. I tried to run over and help, but the blue-haired man who my brother had attacked was restraining me and holding a sword at my throat. I could only watch in horror as Aizen picked up his sword and stabbed Toshiro in the heart._

_"TOSHIRO!" I screamed then watched as my brother raced onto the scene and started to attack Aizen, "No Ichigo, don't!" I could feel the tears, my first tears in thirteen years, fall from my eyes as sobs wracked my frame._

"_Karin? Karin!" I heard someone calling my name, and I struggled to look around and see who it is._

"Karin!" I opened my eyes and saw Yuzu's face a couple of inches above mine. I squeaked and sat up.

"What is it Yuzu? It's almost midnight… wait a minute! Why are you here, I thought you were coming in a couple of days?" I asked, immediately woken up.

"That's why I'm here, we had to come early because the Arrancar kidnapped Orihime! Ichigo went to go and rescue her along with Uryuu, Chad, Rukia and Renji. Lieutenant Kotetsu brought me here and guess what! She told me that she would train me to become a healer to go along with the medical training dad gave me, isn't that exciting?" Yuzu's eyes shined with the prospect of extra medical training.

"Oh my god," I trailed off and put my head between my knees, suddenly feeling sick. Once the feeling passed I stood up, "I need to go for a walk Yuzu, I'll be back in a bit. In the meantime you sleep in the bed, I can take the couch until we figure something else out." Without waiting for an answer I walked out of my room. I really have no clue where I was going, my feet were just leading me places while I thought.

_I can't believe it, no wonder I had that dream! Ichigo you idiot, if you make it back alive I'm going to kick your butt! He took his friends with him too, I hope they're all alright…_

"Karin? Why are you up so late, don't you have training tomorrow?" Startled, I looked up to see Tatsuki coming towards me.

"Yeah, but I needed to go for a walk after the news Yuzu gave me. Where are you staying tonight anyways?" I replied.

"Not sure actually, can I just stay with you?" Tatsuki asked me.

"Sure, but you'll have to take the couch, I already promised the bed to Yuzu. I have a question for you too. Did Toshiro go with them to rescue Orihime?" I crossed my fingers in the hopes that he didn't, although it was selfish of me. I motioned for Tatsuki to follow me, then I turned back towards my room, or at least the way I came. I really had no clue where my feet had brought me.

"No he didn't, why are you asking? Is it because you happen to like a certain someone?" Tatsuki smiled at the blush forming on my face, "My turn to ask a question. What can you tell me about that red-haired guy, Renji?"

I almost tripped out of surprise at Tatsuki's question, "Renji? Not much really. He's the Lieutenant of the Sixth Division, close friends with Rukia when they were kids and is now close friends with Shuuhei Hisagi and Kira Izuru. Why are _you_ asking, do you like a certain someone?" I nudged Tatsuki with my elbow and we turned the corner to see Toshiro standing in front of my door.

"And that's my cue to go inside and sleep, goodnight to the both of you!" Tatsuki waved then went inside my room, closing the door behind her.

"Toshiro! What are you doing here?" I walked over and smiled. _He's back and he's not risking his life to go and save Orihime._

"I was not chosen to go and help your brother, instead Captains Zaraki, Unohana and Kurotsuchi are on their way to Los Noches, the place where they're holding Orihime, to go and help your brother and his friends there. Instead I was sent here to tell you that your training tomorrow will go on as scheduled, and you will begin the Academy the day after. Once you graduate from the Academy, I will train you further, along with a few other higher seats when necessary, on your own so that you are as strong as you feel you need to be. There has been one major change of plans though,and do not blame me for this next bit of news, many captains and lieutenants decided that they didn't want to send a seventeen year old girl into direct battle. It seems that the majority of them like you, even Soi Fon has an, albeit grudgingly, respect for you. Therefore you will be staying here and will be one of the few in charge, got it?" Toshiro looked at me as if though daring to challenge him. He had that expressionless mask on his face and his eyes seemed cold. However, when I searched them a little more, I noticed he was actually worried.

"Fine," I sighed, "I know when to fight and when not to. I do have one condition though, whenever you have free time you have to come and see me at the Academy, as long as I'm not in class that is. Deal?" I stuck out my hand. Toshiro rolled his eyes, but shook my hand anyways.

"Now go to sleep, Hisagi and Izuru aren't going to go any easier on you tomorrow," He turned around and I followed suit, "Oh and Karin?" I turned around and was met with a uniform-clad chest, I hadn't noticerd Toshiro step closer to me he was so silent. I tilted my head up to look at Toshiro's face and was shocked by the intense look in his eyes. Much to my displeasure, I could feel my face heating up due to the close proximity of the two of us and that intense look. The corners of his mouth turned up into an almost smile at me and he put his hand on my head and ruffled my hair, "Stay out of trouble, will you?" I glared at the male in front of me before stomping into my apartment.

"Goodnight Karin," Tatsuki called out softly from the couch. I noticed that someone had placed a pillow and blanket on the floor for me already, so I spread them out and tried to go to sleep, but since I got the news about Ichigo, I knew that wasn't going to happen. So instead I thought about the weird look in Toshiro's eyes earlier and wondered if he felt the same way about me as I felt about him.

DAY TEN- LIEUTENANTS HISAGI AND IZURU

"I'm glad you've already stretched, now we can get to work much more quickly," I was told by Shuuhei while I tried to hold back a yawn. I'd finally gotten asleep, only to be woken up by Yuzu twenty minutes later. Shuuhei seemed much more, I don't know, patient and quieter at work than he did at suppertimes, then again, his squad is missing their captain and he would have needed to step up. Kira also seemed different, then again he has seemed like the moody type ever since I met him, always on ups and downs, "Since you already have some history in that background, we'll just start on some more advanced moves and work on some more beginner moves if you need to. Ready?" I nodded and they started teaching me the techniques. Most of the moves they taught me I already knew from experience, so they moved me up to even higher-level moves. Time passed quickly and it was already time for me to go to the Academy.

"Is there going to be students still at the Academy?" I asked while we walked to meet my teachers.

"Yes, you're going to be one of the few people who don't live on campus," Shuuhei answered while we walked through a crowd of people my age and a little older who were all wearing either white and red uniforms or white and blue uniforms. I got a lot of strange looks from the other students as I was led through the twisting hallways.

"Oh, right," I muttered as I tried to keep up with the two quickly-moving men ahead of me. _Of course I will be, why not put a sign around my neck saying "Hey there! I'm a new girl who is also being trained by the captains and lieutenants, please don't stare at me too much, especially when you find out that my brother is Ichigo Kurosaki, the boy who broke in here so long ago!"_

"Ah, Miss Karin I presume?" A woman looked up as we finally stopped at a room and walked in, "I'm Misato Ochi, and I'm going to be your teacher! You're lucky because this week is a review week and then next week we will have different captains and lieutenants coming in to watch the testing. Tomorrow's Monday so we're all excited to see you in class then! Have a great night, and remember that class starts at seven am sharp!" Miss Ochi turned back to her work and I looked at the other two people in the room, bewildered, who then shrugged. Apparently this was her version of a dismissal so I left the room and walked through the hallways to get back to my room. The two men who had led me here had turned a different way a while ago, so now I was on my own.

_She seems…nice I guess. I remember Shuuhei saying something about her being laid back though, so I am going to have to practice on my own. Hm I guess that this means that when some of my friends come to watch the testing, I'll have to refer to them with their titles. That'll be easy enough! See watch, Lieutenants Hisagi and Izuru. Captain Ukitaki and Lieutenant Matsumoto. Just like I thought, easy! Except for Toshiro… DAMN IT I MEAN CAPTAIN HITSUGAYA! Gah, I can't even do that in my thoughts! I'm screwed, aren't I? This is going to be-_

"OW!" A voice cried out, snapping me from my thoughts. I looked around to see three boys standing around another boy who was sitting on the ground with a hand holding his nose.

"Sorry, I didn't see you there. I'm Karin Kurosaki," I extended my hand to the boy on the ground, who was too frozen to grab my hand, so instead I grabbed onto his shirt and pulled him up. He was rather weird looking with an afro and abnormally large lips. The other boys looked a little bit more normal. One of them had blond hair that vaguely reminded me of a banana, another had large eyebrows, and the last wore glasses (this guy was the most normal looking).

The one with the glasses stepped forward and spoke for the group, "My name Kazuya Usaka. This is Ryohei Toba," He pointed to the boy with the banana hair, "Heita Toujoin," He pointed to eyebrows, "And the guy you ran over is Kei Uehara. It's nice to meet you Miss Kurosaki, you'll be in our class tomorrow so we'll be able to talk more then. Goodnight." They all turned to leave but I stopped them.

"Wait a freaking minute! I just ran one of you guys over and you're leaving before I can even apologize? What the hell? You bet we'll talk more because tomorrow I'm going to be helping you guys out for the tests next week. Goodnight," I turned and left the confused boys where they were. I smiled to myself, it seemed like a good way to apologize since I know I probably broke, or at least majorly bruised, his nose. I continued back to my apartment where I could see Yuzu cooking through the window.

"Hey Yuzu, how was your day?" I asked my twin as I stepped into the room.

"It was great! Lieutenant Kotetsu knows so much about healing _and_ the medical and doctor things Dad was teaching me before we came here. Oh and your boyfriend stopped by and told me to tell you that he wants to see you in his office as soon as you can. Plus I kind of need you out of the apartment for tonight, Jinta is coming by and we're having dinner," Yuzu got this dreamy look in her eyes and knew it would be useless trying to get her to stop seeing Jinta, that red-haired bastard.

"Toshiro's not my boyfriend! And alright, but if I come back and the red-haired annoyance is still here I'm sleeping on the roof and you have to wake me up at six." I sighed, there was no way I'd ever be able to say no to my twin.

"I never said it was Toshiro!" Yuzu practically sang as she continued cooking. I groaned and then a thought flitted through my mind.

"Have you heard any news about Ichigo?" I asked, trying to avoid looking at Yuzu.

"No, not yet. But from what I heard when they left is that it shouldn't take them too long, hopefully," I could hear Yuzu trying to keep the tears down, and so far the tears were winning. I was about to speak but was interrupted by a knock on the door, "That's Jinta, you've got to go!" I sighed and walked over to the door. When I opened it, Toshiro was on the other side and not Jinta.

"Let's go, a red-haired idiot is coming here soon and I don't want to see his face, just in case I beat him up for any times in the future when he hurts Yuzu," I grabbed a confused Toshiro's hand and walked out of the apartment quickly.

"Wait, I thought Renji was helping your brother rescue Orihime?" Toshiro asked me. I rolled my eyes and sent him the best scowl I could manage right now.

"Not Renji, Jinta!" I gritted my teeth," What did you want to see me for anyways?"

"I wanted to know what you said to Hinamori that made her so upset," Toshiro said, stopping and crossing his arms which caused me to stop dead in my tracks..

"What I said to her? I came home from training one night and she was in front of my door. I was completely civil and invited her in for a cup of tea and while I was making it she told me to stop hanging out with you because I'm turning you against her Aizen and she 'couldn't have the two men she loves the most fighting each other.'" I seethed and tried not to raise my voice from the already-approaching frustration. Of course if Hinamori really wanted me to stop seeing Toshiro, she'd go to him and tell I'd upset her.

Toshiro, surprisingly, didn't get mad at me or say that I was lying, "I had hoped that she had just been making up that story, and hadn't done something like that. I'm sorry about that," He looked over me critically, "Have you eaten or slept well in the last couple of days? Because to be honest, you look like crap."

I narrowed my gaze on Toshiro, "I've been busy, so I've had to sacrifice eating in the dining hall for more time to keep up my hygiene and sleep, and I've had to give up some sleep time to make sure I stretch and practice the techniques I've learned. Also, for your information, it is kind of hard to sleep when you've just heard that your brother practically went to his death. Combine that with the fact that you just had a nightmare about the two men you really care for dying and that sums up to a pretty sleepless night! And further more-" I trailed off as I noticed the look on Toshiro's face. It was almost like he was jealous, or angry _Was he jealous or angry? Naw, there's no way he'd be jealous of anything to do with me, nor would he be mad at me for… wait what DID I do?_

"Who's the other man in your dream?" Toshiro avoided looking at my face. I froze then chuckled which earned me a glare from the man in front of me.

"You idiot, it was you! I dreamed that you and Ichigo came to save me after I was captured by Aizen and he killed the both of you. I was heartbroken that I had lost my brother and my…"

"Your what?" Toshiro asked sharply, searching my face as if he could find the answer there. I was trapped under that intense gaze again as I tried to find my voice.

"My, um, my best friend?" I questioned.

"Is that all you feel towards me?" Toshiro asked. I vaguely realized that his hand was still holding onto mine. I slowly shook my head no and looked down at the ground for all that I was worth, "That's a relief." I felt my neck snap as I quickly looked up at Toshiro. His eyes were darker, like that night when we played soccer and fell down.

_Oh my goodness I think that I'm going to faint now._

**Alright, time for one more small ramble. There won't be too much Hinamori hating in this story because I don't _hate_ her, but let's just say that if she were on fire and I had a glass of water, well I'd drink the water... And i don't hate her for "Getting in the way of Karin and Toshiro," I just don't like that she's almost died like three times and that she is more than just a little bit bipolar. Yup, that's it.**

**NOW REVIEW OR ELSE!**

**See, you can review right there!**

**V**


	13. Lot's of Loves

**I dislike rude people… and do you know what's REALLY rude? Reading without reviewing *Le gasp!* And since I haven't internet access for the past few days, I will be getting the last few chapters up possibly by the end of the week. See, I've been thinking, and I realized that this story really is almost done. I know that I'm pushing the storyline together a lot, but I hate doing filler chapters so I'm thinking it's only going to be this chapter and two others, but don't let that stop you! Like I said earlier, it's really rude to read and not review! Onto the story~!**

**Karin's POV**

_Oh my goodness I think that I'm going to faint now. No! I can't faint, not when I just found out that there's a chance Toshiro likes me back. I'm sounding like a girly girl again… oh well._

"Wait, what?" I asked looking at Toshiro, "I thought that you were going to break off our friendship and that things would be super awkward every time we saw each other. But-"

Toshiro shook his head and motioned around at the people who were starting to pass by after supper, "Hold on a second." Toshiro pulled me into an alleyway. I leaned against the back wall which was completely in shadow. Toshiro was a few feet away from me with an unreadable expression, but his stiff posture gave away his nervousness.

"_Do_ you like me like that?" I asked once we were alone. I gasped in surprise when Toshiro was right in front of me since I hadn't noticed he had closed the distance until now, and then he pushed me against the wall. It was hard to see in the low light of the alley, but I could see Toshiro's outline, and feel our position. He had me pinned against the wall, his arms on either side of my head and his chest pressed to mine and his head was lowered towards mine. I was hyper-aware of every single part of our bodies that were touching and I felt like my body had electricity going through it. His head kept moving towards mine until I felt his breath on my face.

_Ohmygosh, is he going to kiss me?! My first kiss! I wonder what it'll be like? Damn I have _got_ to stop acting like a girly-girl, I can't stand it!_

The sensation of that light brush of breath sent butterflies flying in my stomach, and I felt like I couldn't breathe for a minute, "Does this answer your question?" I nodded, my eyes wide, "Good."

"Yup," I did my best to keep my voice level and just a hint sarcastic. I had a reputation to keep up as being the violent and sarcastic twin after all, "That answers my question. How long have you felt like that?"

"I'm not really sure, sometime between our encounter in the woods and when you jumped off of the wall to escape," Toshiro frowned, "You're never doing that again by the way. But let's go get you something to eat and then get you back to your room so you can sleep," Toshiro pulled away and I followed, grabbing his hand again and intertwining our fingers. We strolled around looking for someplace to get food and talked about silly things. We finally headed back to my room and it was quiet in there, "Goodnight Karin," Toshiro said and bent down to give me a goodnight kiss… on the forehead.

I chuckled then turned inside, "You too, and don't forget to come and visit me when I'm on break Toshiro!" I walked inside. When I went to grab my pajamas from my room, I saw Yuzu asleep on the bed with a smile on her face. I moved to the couch and was surprised to see that Tatsuki wasn't there.

_Oh well, a more comfortable sleep for me. Darn you Toshiro, not kissing me and then bringing me home at a totally acceptable time. Geez, this has to be the earliest I'm going to bed in days, and it's appreciated. Tomorrow's my first day at the Academy! Wait a minute… NOBODY EVER GAVE ME A UNIFORM! That's going to make tomorrow all the more embarrassing… _

FIRST DAY AT THE ACADEMY

"Good morning class!" Miss Ochi said from the front of the class. She gave us all an hour and a half-long lecture on the skills and assets we'll all need in order to procure good spots in the divisions., "Let's get to work then, shall we? The first thing that we're going to do to review is getting sparing partners and spar!" The class divided up to do as Miss Ochi said, and I was paired with a very shy girl who seemed to be afraid of me. It was very easy for me to spar with her and win with my background in kendo, and apparently moves that the other Academy students haven't learned. We kept going for a good thirty minutes while I gave her some pointers on what to do.

_I don't want to sound conceited or anything, but are these kids really graduating? I'm guessing it has to do with my training with the captains and lieutenants these past couple of days. Hm, I hope that this isn't too easy for me; I mean how else will I improve?_

While my mind had been wandering, I hadn't noticed that the four boys from yesterday had been watching me fight against the girl, "Wow she's good. I wonder if she'd be able to beat Kaoru."

I paused to give both the girl and I a small break, "Who is Kaoru?"

"Kaoru Unigiya is the top of our class and has been all year, he's over there beating up his opponent. Nobody has been able to beat him at all," The one with the glasses- _I think his name was Kazuya_- pointed towards a black-haired boy who was mercilessly beating up his opponent with the flat side of his sword. His Opponent had dropped his training sword and was trying to defend himself with his hands. Miss Ochi was busy helping another girl who had a question and didn't notice what was going on.

"Hey Kaoru!" I snapped walking over to the fight with the four boys following me and pulling on my sleeve, trying to get me to stop. Obviously they failed, "Can't you see that your opponent dropped his sword? Right now you're fighting both stupidly and unfairly." I stopped in front of Kaoru and planted my fists on my hips, still holding my zanpakuto in my right hand. While he was distracted, his opponent scrambled to pick up his sword and get away.

"Life isn't fair, and he needs to learn not to drop his zanpakuto, if this were a battle he'd be dead by now," Kaoru replied glaring at me.

"So you beat him up because of it? Why don't you go and boil your head?" I retorted with a very unfeminine snort. People around us gasped and I smiled inwardly, "How about we fight? Just you and me, the loser obviously loses their dignity, and the winner is at the top of the class. What do you say?" I looked at Kaoru with my chin held high and a glare on my face.

"That sounds great, although I hate hurting girls, this will be rather enjoyable, and don't expect me to go easy on you just because you're new. This should be easy, just a new girl who got bumped up because she though her lower-classmen classes were too easy. I'm going to enjoy taking you down a peg, you could stand to lose a little bit of your ego little girl. You think you're all that just because you're Ichigo Kurosaki's little sister, but you are nothing. I bet the only reason that you even got into this class is because you rode through with you brother's name," Kaoru sneered. I snorted and counted to ten in my head to calm down and not hit him then and there, something I'd learned from Byakuya who apparently had to do that a lot around my brother.

"What do you mean I rode through on my brother's name?" I snarled at Kaoru, "He has absolutely nothing to do with my fighting skills! Hell I don't think he even wanted me to come here and learn how to fight! The only reason I'm here in this class is because the Captains and Lieutenants wanted me to make sure that I was really ready. Besides, I think the one who could stand to lose a little bit of their ego is you. I'm ready when you are," I moved to the ready position that I'd been taught by Byakuya and everyone seemed to laugh a bit, "What is it?"

"That's not the beginning position we've always been taught, this is," Kaoru moved into a different position and I noted that there were many glaringly obvious holes in his defense.

"Hm, this is how I've always been taught. Let's see who does better then shall we?" I grinned and waited for Kaoru to make the first move. Just as I'd predicted, he came running at me.

Kaoru's attack was just a brash and straightforward as his personality was and I used my training to the fullest. Byakuya had told me that you could usually tell how a person fights by their first move, especially with beginners and the inexperienced. His first move was a fake-out to the left, and then an attack to the right. Kaoru's eyes gave away too much information on his moves, and they flicked to where he would attack next a few seconds beforehand. He stuck to the trick attacking to one side and became so predictable it was easy to avoid. Too much energy was used in all of his attacks, so it was only a matter of time until he'd be too tired to attack me.

"What, all bark and no bite little girl?" Kaoru sneered after fifteen minutes of attacking me as he tried another yet fake out and I used that advantage to duck, then move over and swing at him and hit him with the flat of my blade on the stomach. He grunted and bent over a little bit and I moved behind him quickly to position my sword at his neck from behind.

"First off, you're too predictable, all of your moves were easy to read and you used them over and over again. Second your attacks used up too much of your energy so you were tired out easily. Third, you're a jerk so try and change that. Just because someone made a mistake doesn't mean you need to beat it out of them," I removed my sword and put it back in the sheath and held my hand out for Kaoru to take. He glared at me and got up himself. All in all the fight took about twenty minutes including our trash talk at the beginning and my lecture at the end. I heard clapping coming from the door and saw Captains Ukitake and Kyoraku standing there with Lieutenant Ise. The class bowed and, a little late, I followed suit.

"Very nicely executed Karin!" Captain Kyoraku told me as they walked over.

"Yes, and it was very wise to defend until you saw an opening instead of attacking over and over again. Congratulations Karin," Captain Ukitake told me and I smiled.

"I agree, very nice Karin, but we need you to come with us if that's alright with Miss Ochi?" Nanao looked towards my teacher and pushed up her glasses.

"By all means, we were just going to do some more sparring, and I think that she could use a break," Miss Ochi replied and I was ushered out by the three of them.

"Is everything alright?" I looked at them worriedly. After seeing what time it was (only about ten in the morning)

"Your brother is back and we thought that you'd like to see him," Captain Ukitake told me, "You go on and run ahead, us older people will walk along and meet you there." I smiled widely and ran ahead.

"Wait," I stopped after a few feet and turned around, "Where is he at?"

"He's at the dining hall stuffing his face, where else?" Captain Kyoraku grinned back at me. I nodded and took off running again. It took me only a few minutes while running at my top speed to get to the dining hall. Once there I opened the door and skidded to a stop. Inside was my brother and all of his friends and I stormed over to their table.

"YOU IDIOT!" I yelled and smacked my brother on the back of the head. He was eating (which I didn't notice… oops?) and choked on his food, "WHAT THE HELL WERE YOU THINKING?!" I turned my glare on the rest of the group, "WHAT THE HELL WERE ALL OF YOU THINKING?! Oh, except for you Orihime, I'm happy you're back," I smiled at the frightened girl who tried to smile back. Then I turned back to the rest of the group, "So tell me, what were you thinking going there WITHOUT BACK-UP?!" Everyone looked a little shocked at my outburst.

**Renji's Thought's**

Note to self, never, _ever_ get Karin mad. I mean, how could she go from being a rude girl when I first met her, to a sweet girl in order to trick us, to downright scary then sweet again, and then scary evil again?! I thought the only person that could do that was Rukia. I just know that I never want to be on the receiving end of that glare ever again.

**Karin's POV**

"WHAT THE HELL KARIN?! YOU COULDA KILLED ME BY DOING THAT!" Ichigo glared back at me. _I wonder if he knows how worried he made Yuzu and I. I swear one night I heard her crying one night, but I would never tell her that I heard that._

Ichigo finally got the hint that he'd worried us due to a prompt shin-kick and Rukia telling him, "Idiot! They were worried about you and you go and yell at your sister!" Ichigo's only response was to cock his head with a confused look on his face and a 'Huh?'

"I was worried about all of you," I said quietly, my eyes on the ground. Even Renji seemed to stop eating to look up at me in surprise. I kept looking at the ground as I continued on, "You're all kinda my adopted family now. I mean I've only known you guys for a short time, but you all have been really nice to Yuzu and I. So no, it's not just Ichigo we were worried about." I refused to make eye contact with any of them, I was too embarrassed after my abnormal emotional moment. Then Ichigo's expression softened and he stood up and hugged me.

"I will always make it back to you and Yuzu and Rukia," Ichigo said as he pulled away from the hug and ruffled my hair. I hit him softly in the gut, half-heartedly yelling at him for doing that. Everyone else seemed to be put at ease and I asked for the story. Just as they were about to start Tatsuki and Yuzu came running in and everyone was hugging (except for Uryuu and I. I do NOT do hugs more than absolutely necessary). I saw Tatsuki staring at Renji after her and Orihime had hugged, and I realized why she'd been asking about him.

"Oh my goodness Tatsuki! Now I know why you were MMPF!" I said loudly while a madly blushing Tatsuki covered my mouth with her hand and gripped my shoulder painfully with her other one. She smiled too sweetly at everyone then glared at me when they stopped looking.

"Ichigo! What happened while you guys were gone?" Yuzu asked as she checked to make sure that our older friends were okay.

"When Aizen realized that he couldn't get to us through you two," Ichigo gestured to Yuzu and I, "He sent out Ulquiorra out to capture Orihime. She was brought to Las Noches and guarded and as soon as all of us found out we sent word to Yamamoto and the rest of the Shinigami then went after her. Once we got there we had to split up to try and find our way to Orihime and each fought our own battles against various Arrancar but we were able to get all of us out of there. Then we got back here and I was assaulted by my own little sister and I'm probably going to have permanent brain damage now," Ichigo finished his story and went back to eating.

"Che, you deserved it," I scoffed, even though inside I was grinning. _Just like old times, before Ichigo moved out and Goat Chin died on us._

"Karin!" Yuzu gasped, "How can you be so mean to our own brother? Here I thought that Captain Hitsugaya would have made you nicer, especially now that you're so close!" Yuzu's eyes were shining with her I-can't-wait-to-plan-your-guys'-wedding -and-_ohmygoodness_-let's-not-forget-the-babies-that-come-afterwards look and I gulped. _Not the way I wanted Ichigo to find out about Toshiro and I being so close._

Ichigo was about to yell something when I heard Rangiku calling my name and running, dragging a rather disgruntled Gin behind her, into the dining hall, "Karin! I thought that I was part of your little family now too! So why did I have to hear from my Captain of all people that you two were together? As soon as I heard I came running to find you and congratulate you!" Rangiku squealed and pulled me into her comically-sized breasts.

"Rangiku. Can't. Breathe!" I tried to gasp and Rangiku let me go immediately.

"Sorry Karin! Sometime I just, you know, forget about having them there," Rangiku chuckled into her hand.

"Wait a minute Karin, you and that midget captain are dating?! If he hurts you, I swear to god I'M GOING TO GO AND KICK HIS-" Ichigo started yelling, but was stopped by a fist colliding with his head thanks to Rukia.

"Matsumoto, I believe I tried to tell you that Karin and I were only becoming really close _friends_, it's not my fault you didn't stay long enough to hear the rest of the sentence," Toshiro said walking into the room, "I came for Ichigo, we have a captain's meeting now to discuss what happened at Las Noches. We are to report immediately. The rest of you are free to do whatever you want, including you Karin." Toshiro nodded at us then turned and walked away. Ichigo, who had been quiet until this point, jumped and followed, threatening Toshiro. Everyone else dispersed, and I stood there in shock. _What the hell just happened?! He just acknowledges our new…relationship, and then he turns around acting like the cold Tenth Division Captain from before!_

"Karin, I need to talk to you real quick," Renji grabbed my upper arm and started dragging me out of the dining hall while I protested. Once we were in a hallway alone he stopped and turned around. There was a hard to place look in his eyes, though if I had to guess I'd say it was almost longing and/or desperation? "I need your advice. See, there's this girl that I like and, well, she's a lot like you only less moody. How do I ask her out?"

"You like Tatsuki too?!" I hissed at Renji, who seemed shocked that I'd figured it out so fast.

"What?" A startled gasp was heard a little ways down the hallway. We both turned to see Tatsuki standing there with her mouth open "Is that true Renji?"

"Um, m-maybe?" Renji stuttered. I glanced at him and face palmed, his face was redder than his hair, if that was at all possible. Tatsuki's face was starting to turn pink too and I sighed. We stood there like that for a good minute or two: Renji avoiding contact and showing off shades of red I'd never discovered, while Tatsuki stood there too shocked to do anything, and I looked between the two of them frustrated.

"What the hell?! Stop acting like such pansies because neither of you are! I'm going to leave now, and when I see you again, you better be going out, or have at least gone on one date," I turned and walked out of the hallway and back to my room, or at least I tried to. When I had left the two stuttering teens in the hallway and gotten outside, my way was blocked by Hinamori, "Hello Hinamori, do you need something?" I looked at her cautiously and, just to be safe, put my hand on my zanpakuto.

"Yes, I came to tell you that you are in major trouble now since you have not left my Toshiro alone. I thought that you would be smart enough to listen to me, but you're not. Just watch yourself Kurosaki," Hinamori's voice actually held the emotion she was lacking last time, but she still seemed to remain expressionless. She walked off as I opened my mouth to speak.

_Holy hell she doesn't ever stop does she? Besides, Toshiro said he liked me back… in a way. I should go and see if Toshiro's in his office yet. If he's not then I'm sure that Matsumoto is in there. With Gin. Doing who-knows-what- yeah maybe I'll just leave a note in order to avoid any awkward situations. Please be there Toshiro, I don't know if I could stand seeing anything too intimate between those two._ I shuddered and changed my direction. By now I was used to going to Toshiro's office to look for him that I knew all of the shortcuts. Once I got there, I was surprised to hear voices coming from the office.

"I have no clue how to tell her that I don't really return her feelings, and I hate the feeling of leading her on like this," I heard Toshiro telling someone, who I assumed to be Matsumoto. Surprised, I checked my watch, and as expected, only ten minutes had passed since Ichigo had been sent to go give information.

"With the amount of interaction you two have, I think that you'd better tell her soon. It seems that she's spreading rumors around and even trying to chase off anyone who might get in between the two of you," Matsumoto replied, and I could practically see Toshiro's face of frustration.

"That's the problem! I don't want to hurt her feelings, but I just _don't like her in any way!_ Especially if she's really been pulling the stunts I've heard she has been" I could hear Toshiro's teeth grinding from the spot I had taken by the door. I could feel tears pricking at my eyes, so I ran home as fast as I could. When I got to my apartment, there was a note taped to my door. Blindly, I ripped it down and stumbled into my apartment then down the hall into my room. I slid down the door after slamming it shut and read the note, feeling the tears burning my eyes as they tried to escape as I did.

* * *

_ Karin,_

_Head Captain Yamamoto has finally gotten all of our rooms arranged, so Tatsuki and I won't be staying in here anymore. If you need me or anyone else, we're just down the hall a little ways._

_ Love,_

_ Yuzu_

* * *

_Well, at least I can cry without anyone seeing. Why is it I haven't cried in thirteen years, but a boy, practically a stranger at that, can make me cry after knowing him for only two weeks? I didn't even cry when Goat Chin died, or when that idiot Espada Ulquiorra left that gash in my side. So why am I crying for Toshiro? I know that I care for him deeply, and that he had told me… well kinda showed me that he did too. At least that's what I had thought. Maybe it's best if I just run straight back to Ichigo's house, my new house, and stay there by myself for a while. At least then I won't have to put up with idiot boys anymore. Ichigo would be the only problem though._

"Karin, are you in there? Yuzu came looking for me because she heard a door slamming over here and sent me over because she says we're more alike. I really don't get what she meant," Here it was easy to imagine Ichigo scratching the back of his head and I let out a humorless laugh, "So you are alive then! I'm walking through your living space, which actually looks lived in compared to Byakuya's estate," Ichigo's voice was right outside the door and I moved over so I was leaning against the wall instead of the door. Ichigo opened the door slowly and looked around for me. When he saw me, I gave a teeny tiny smile and wiggled my fingers in greeting. He gave me one look over and his entire expression hardened; his grip on the door was so hard that I think he might have been denting my doorknob.

"Yo," I said weakly. Ichigo sighed then stepped into the room, once he was in he closed the door and sat down next to me.

"Please tell me that this has nothing to do with Toshiro, because if it does then I'm going to go and-" I cut him off.

"It's okay, it's not anything that he can help. Right now though, if it's alright with you, I'd rather talk about something else. Will you tell me about your battle in Las Noches, you didn't have much time to go into detail about anything," I looked over at my brother and saw the inner turmoil. To tell the gruesome details to his youngest sister, or spare her the gore and just leave her angry," Please?" This singular word was like a trigger to Ichigo and he decided. We sat there for an hour while he told me about his personal experiences in Las Noches, then let me ask my questions. Eventually we moved onto stories about our parents, Ichigo supplying all of them about our mom since I didn't really remember her.

I don't really know at what point it was that I fell asleep, but I woke up later and noticed that it was already three in the afternoon and the last thing I remember is Ichigo telling me that he'd always be there for me after gently lifting me up and tucking me into my bed. Getting up, I stretched and heard a couple of joints pop. I walked into my kitchen and saw a note from Ichigo telling me that we were all having dinner at the Kuchiki Estate and he'd be back at 4:30 to pick Yuzu and me up. We were supposed to dress formally apparently, and I realized that all of my nice clothes were still at Ichigo's house.

_I'm going to have to go to Yuzu then, she always brings her nice clothes with her. Ugh, this means that I'll have to wear a dress, and I despise dresses more than I despise girly girls. And trust me, I hate them._ I was about to go and look for Yuzu's room, when I heard a knock on the door. _Geez, does everyone come to my door before I can get to theirs?! And how in the hell does everyone seem to know where I'm staying? That's what I'd love to know._ Nevertheless I opened up my door to find Rukia, Yuzu, and Matsumoto all crowding the space in front of my door.

"Perfect! Now we have a lot of work to do on you two if we want to make a good impression on brother," Rukia said as she hustled inside carrying two of those clothes bags you get to cover fancy dresses and tuxedos," So in other words Karin, since he's only seen you all sweaty in training, you're the one we really need to focus on, especially since everyone seems to compare you to Ichigo. Rangiku, did you bring all of your makeup?"

Matsumoto nodded then looked me over critically, "But I'm not quite sure if I have any foundation light enough for her fair skin. I think we could skip the foundation altogether since her skin is so clear and smooth. I say that we give her a coral eye shadow and a little blush for color; then we use brown eyeliner since it's less noticeable. After that it's a coat of mascara and her makeup's all done!" Matsumoto squealed and clapped her hands together, "Let's get started on her hair now!"

_I have to remember that if I ever need anyone to help me with a makeover, it's got to be Matsumoto, she's amazing at this stuff!_ The three of them decided that it'd be easier to just put my hair up into some elaborate bun and curl the strands that were left hanging down. When I was finally allowed to look at myself in the mirror, after they put on my makeup and PLUCKED MY FREAKING EYEBROWS, I was amazed.

The girl who looked back at me was vaguely familiar, like a face I knew, but couldn't quite place. I couldn't see the bun very well from where I was, but the hair framing my face was no longer the straight bangs I had, instead they were now curled and gave me a gentler and slightly fragile look. Without my medium-length hair to give me my tomboy-ish looks, my face now held more similarities to Yuzu than Ichigo, and the angles of my face were softer and rounder. The combination of coral eye shadow, brown eyeliner and mascara made my eye the focal point of my face, since they appeared larger and gave them a more distinctly grey look.

"It's time to see your dress now!" Rukia smiled and pulled out something I probably would have picked out for myself. The dress was a pale coral color that almost exactly matched my eye shadow. It was knee-length and sleeveless with a sweetheart neckline, however there was a sheer see-through material that went up an inch high in my neck and held the dress up. There was a belt around my waist, and from there down it had very small pleats to create the bottom. I was ushered out of the room and told to put the dress on whether I liked it or not. Once I stepped out of the makeshift changing room in my dress, I noticed that they had set to work on Yuzu immediately. Matsumoto had put a golden eye shadow on her already and was working on a pink lip gloss. While Matsumoto was doing that, Rukia was curling Yuzu's hair into soft waves. I stayed out of sight just to make sure that Matsumoto wouldn't try to put any lip gloss on me and waited until I heard Yuzu come out of the changing room.

In comparison to my rather plain dress, Yuzu had on a dress with a flower print-but not one of those annoying ones with the white background and huge child-like flowers on it. Instead it was a magenta color with flowers that were a very similar color so that they didn't stand out too much. She too had a sweetheart-style dress, except her was strapless instead. On her feet she had on a slightly heeled black shoe. I looked down at my own feet and realized that I had no shoes yet.

"Uh Rukia, where are my shoes?" I noticed the mischievous glint her eyes, and I backed away waving my hands on front of my body, "No, no, no, no, no, no, NO! I am NOT wearing heels! I will wear my tennis shoes if that's all you brought me. I'll even wear sandals as long as I don't have to wear heels!"

"Perfect, here you go then!" Rukia threw me a pair of strappy black sandals and I groaned. _I definitely walked straight into that trap. What am I going to do now?! I really don't want to wear these sandals!_ A knock on the door snapped me out of my thoughts and I blinked to see Yuzu's hand waving in front of my face.

"Karin? You blanked out for about fifteen minutes, Rukia even got ready while you just sat there glaring at your sandals like they were going to eat you or something," Yuzu asked.

"I'm fine," I sighed, "Let's get going now so that less people can see me in this ridiculous getup." Ichigo had stepped into the room and looked at the three of us. He was wearing a nice button-down shirt and black pants with black shoes. When he made eye contact with my, he smiled softly… well as softly as Ichigo can. We all walked out of the room, and Matsumoto turned the opposite way that we were going. _I've never been to the Kuchiki Manor; I wonder what it looks like? Byakuya doesn't seem like one to go out and buy frivolous things that would just sit around the house and collect dust. I bet it's plain, but still nice looking._

During my thinking, I had just been following behind Rukia and Ichigo and next to Yuzu. I was startled to find that we were standing next to what I assumed was Byakuya's door. A servant opened the door after Rukia knocked, and when they noticed it was us, he hurried us towards the back of the house. I stopped trying to figure out what was behind all of the doors we passed, until we finally entered the dining room. Byakuya was sitting at the head of the table and there were four other places set up at the table. From the time we sat down, until the time we were done eating, only the necessities were said, like, "Hello," or, "Please pass the butter." When we were all done eating, we were dismissed to leave, I bolted for the door and walked back to my room as fast as I could walk in these silly sandals.

The minute I reached my apartment, I shed my heels and jumped into bed, turning on my alarm clock half an hour earlier than normal. As a fell asleep, I could feel my resolve forming, because, no; I had not forgotten everything I'd heard earlier today. _I'm going to push myself in my studies, to show Toshiro, and Kaoru that I'm not weak, that I don't ride through on my brother's name, and that I can be the model student, not pulling any stunts… okay not pulling too many stunts. Starting tomorrow of course._

**The end for today! But tomorrow is a bright new day! So read, review and favorite! Or at least review because if you don't, I'll tell Ichigo you call him a strawberry behind his back! Review right there! |**

**V **


	14. The End of Aizen, Among Other Things

**A/N: Okay, so I obviously lied when I said that this would be up by the end of the week, and I'm sorry about that! Now I'd like to take this short little rant to really thank ****FlyingLikeAButterfly**** for being the first reviewer of my first ever Bleach Fanfic. As a thank you, I'd like to tell them that if she(?) wants me to, I'll write her(?) a one-shot! (Just private message me the pairing and any prompts, just no lemon!) Now onto the last chapter, not including the epilogue, of ****The Secret of Seireitei****! **

**Karin's POV**

The next week and a half went by in a blur, with reviews for the rest of my first week, and then Captains and Lieutenants coming in the next week. The only new lesson that I learned because of the Aizen threat was how to defeat a Hollow. All you had to do was cut through its mask and it would disappear. I threw myself into my studies and stayed late most days until almost eight at night to practice and become stronger. Occasionally Ikkaku and Yumichika would come over and spar with me. Even though I was nowhere near Ikkaku's swordsmanship levels, I was exceeding those of the lower-seated officers, or at least that's what I was told. One night I even got Kira and Shuuhei to help me out with my self-defense and hand-to-hand combat. Renji came over a couple of times to help me learn more sword techniques and improve the ones I was a little weak on and one night we had a very interesting conversation.

"So Renji," I panted as the two of us took a quick water break, "How's Tatsuki?" Just as I predicted, Renji flushed and choked on his water.

"Shu-shut up! You should be focusing on your graduation, which, for your information, is in exactly one week! Now let's do it again, going through the movements," Renji snapped after he recovered. A little while later when I looked at him, he was still blushing a little bit.

I took that as a yes that they were dating. Every night that I stayed later, Ichigo would bring me supper and sit with me to talk while I took a ten minute break to eat. He updated me on the daily lives of our friends, and even shared an important piece of information with me on our last night of doing this.

"I'm going to be gone for a while Karin. I haven't been entirely truthful with you and Yuzu, and I need help with training of my own. Plus where I'm going, I will hopefully be getting us more allies for our fight against Aizen. I leave tomorrow actually," Ichigo looked over at me, and I tried to hide the hurt I was feeling. I knew it was selfish of me, but in only three days I'd be graduating from the Academy, since today was Tuesday night.

"You do what you have to Ichigo, I'll be fine here. I'll take care of Yuzu and Rukia while you're gone and everything, and I'll gladly kick Jinta's as- I mean butt- if he does anything stupid to Yuzu," I forced myself to smile at my brother, who didn't buy it for a minute. I dropped the act and looked at Ichigo seriously, "But make sure that you come back alive and in one piece, otherwise I'm going to have to kick your dead butt all over again!"

"And maybe I'll even let you," Ichigo said as he ruffled my hair. I stuck my tongue out and slapped his hand away before he too, turned serious, "You can't tell anyone about this though, only the Captains and Lieutenants know about this." He stood up, grabbed our dishes, and walked out of the training dojo.

_Alright Karin, now's the time to work harder than ever. Yesterday Captains Yamamoto, Soi Fon and Komamura came to test our speed, tracking, strategy and agility. Today we had Captain Ukitake come with Lieutenants Hisagi and Izuru to watch how well we attacked and defended ourselves without zanpakutos. According to the schedule Miss Ochi gave us, tomorrow Byakuya and Zaraki will come with their lieutenants (and in Zaraki's case, his third and fifth seat) to see how well we can fight and spar. Thursday we have testing on our knowledge of medical training and the tracing of poisons. Friday is the day that all of the Captains and Lieutenants come to watch us in test situations._

Wednesday and Thursday went by just fine, although I was starting to miss Toshiro's company. I was a little surprised that he hadn't tried to talk to me yet after hearing how desperate he sounded when talking to Matsumoto. Thursday night I went home right after school to eat a big meal and then go to sleep. Granted it was only seven at night when I went to bed, but as predicted, I was up often tossing and turning. Come Friday morning, I was the first one in classroom at 6:30 am besides Miss Ochi. I stretched on my own and went over everything I'd been taught and what knew to be my weak points. By the time I was done with all of this everyone else had filed in and followed my lead. After a half an hour pep talk, Miss Ochi led us out of the classroom and off of Academy grounds. We were then led to an open area in the forest.

"Alright class, here's the deal. We have a few test Hollows that will be popping up randomly. Your jobs are to eliminate them, plain and simple. Some of you will be injured, others will not. It is up to you on what to do if you see a classmate fall. Think of your classmates as your squad members. Your test will begin in one minute," Miss Ochi disappeared from sight and everyone stood dumbfounded. _Are they idiots, they should be doing last minute preparations, not having a 'Who can look like the biggest idiot' contest._

"Okay, it's up to all of you on what you want to do, but I think it might be best if maybe we kind of work in smaller teams. That way, if someone is injured, one person can help, and the others can defend the two while they make do with what they've got. What do you all say?" I said while putting my hair up into a ponytail. When I looked around, I saw everyone but Kaoru nodding.

"Well that's not how it'll work on real missions, so I decline," Kaoru sneered.

"Fifteen seconds until they attack!" The shy girl I had sparred with on the first day, whose name I had learned to be Midori, piped up and we all nodded, drawing our swords. Just as the timer hit zero, the first Hollow popped into the clearing. The people closest to it attacked, and were able to defeat it easily. Then the clearing was flooded with the simulation Hollows and everyone was busy. People tried to divide up into groups of three, which seemed to work out the best since they could, for the most part, have each other's backs. I cut down Hollows left and right, trying more to defend those who had their backs turned to a Hollow. When almost all of them were gone, and we were taking care of the wounded, did I notice Kaoru struggling against a particularly tough Hollow. As I was about to run over and help, the Hollow smacked Kaoru to the ground with its tail, then loomed over the unconscious boy.

_Goddamn idiot!_ I gritted my teeth as I ran over to the Hollow as fast as I could. Once I reached Kaoru, I blocked with my sword to prevent the Hollow's claws from getting ahold of him, "Midori!" I yelled behind my shoulder to the girl, "Could ya spare me a second and get Kaoru outta here? I don't want to risk his life." Midori nodded and scurried over. When the two of them were a safe distance away, I moved quickly out from under the claws of the monster, panting at this point. This particular Hollow was a disgusting sight: it had long, gangly arms and short legs. Its head and torso were also large which made its moves more cumbersome. Thankfully for me, my four new friends ran over and distracted the Hollow long enough for me to catch my breath, then I ran up an arm. Once I was on the neck, I slashed through the mask and the Hollow disintegrated.

Miss Ochi came out a few seconds after a group of my classmates had defeated the last Hollow. I was sitting, much to my displeasure, while Midori checked me over. "Alright class, that was spectacular! The Captains are going to talk while we make our way back to the Academy to get cleaned up. I have to say now though, I am so proud of all of you guys and girls! Let's go then," Midori held out a hand to help me up, and I gladly took it. Miss Ochi led us all back the way we came, and while I was walking Renji, Shuuhei, Kira, Matsumoto, Rukia, Ikkaku and Yumichika all walked up to me to give their congratulations. A lot of my classmates gaped when they saw me talking to so many high-ranking officers.

"Karin!" Matsumoto picked me up and squeezed me, once again, into her overly-large breasts. Thankfully it was only a short hug, but it still made me wonder if she was really happy for me, or trying to put me into a chokehold.

"Our own little prodigy is all grown up now, huh?" Renji grinned, "I swear it was just yesterday she was holding a zanpakuto on the wrong end."

"Idiot!" I hissed and punched Renji's arm. I heard a couple of my classmates gasp at the contact. _Huh I guess you're not allowed to hit a superior officer_, "I was in kendo before I even came here, so of course I knew how to hold a sword right!" Everyone chuckled and we continued on our way.

"I'm sure that your brother would be proud of you had he been here," Rukia smiled at me and I hugged her tightly, "Now we've got to go, but wait up after class, a bunch of us want to take you out for a celebratory dinner tonight, our treat." I nodded and ran to catch up with my classmates. We were back in our classroom in no time, and the only person who was badly injured was Kaoru, who was just waking up. Not long after we all had gotten into our seats, the Captains came in in numerical order, with the Lieutenants behind them in the same order.

"All of you showed great strengths today, each in your own way. However, as the tradition goes, we must pick the one student who showed the hardest, and the best work. That is why through a unanimous vote, we have picked Karin Kurosaki. She was introduced into our lifestyle a month ago, but has only been training to become a Shinigami for the past three weeks. Karin, please stand up," Captain Yamamoto looked at me and I swallowed then followed his orders, "Since you will be undergoing more training under the careful watch of Captain Hitsugaya, you have been placed into the Tenth Division as the Fifth Seat. Do you accept?"

I swallowed again and nodded, "I do."

"Good, you will begin on Monday after you have had the weekend to move into your new quarters. As for the rest of you," Captain Yamamoto turned to the class, "You will all learn of your Division assignments now." Lieutenant Sasakibe read the list of my classmates in alphabetical order. As much as I despised Kaoru, I was glad to learn that he was placed in the Eleventh Division where his temper and straight-forward attacks would be welcomed. Midori was placed into the Fourth Division, and the four guys I befriended all went into the Eighth Division,

"You are all dismissed now," Captain Yamamoto said and the class hurried out to pack their bags. As I had promised, I waited for my friends who were ready to leave almost right away. I was surprised to see so many people I had not expected had showed up to my dinner. Our group included: Captains Ukitake, Kyoraku, Komamura, Unohana and Toshiro, all of the Lieutenants showed up except for Nemu, Hinamori and Sasakibe, and Ikkaku and Yumichika tagged along as well. _I didn't know so many people would want to come to a celebratory dinner for me making Fifth seat, I wonder why they all came?_

"Well Karin, everyone likes you! Captain says that even Soi Fon wanted you in the Second Division! But now you get to work with me!" Matsumoto said, knocking me out of my stupor. _Huh, did I say that out loud?_ She ran squealing to Shuuhei and Kira about how much fun the two of us were going to have. I learned from Shuuhei and Kira one night over dinner that the three of them were pretty constant drinking buddies, although Matsumoto hadn't gone drinking for a while since Gin came back. I dropped behind the group a little ways with Rukia and enjoyed my temporary freedom from the large crowd.

"Karin, aren't you going to change out of your dirty uniform before dinner?" Rukia asked. _I was hoping she wouldn't notice that. I didn't do laundry this week because I've been training so hard. Now the only clean clothes I have is that formal dress that I wore to Byakuya's._

"Naw, this is fine. Besides, I don't have any clean clothes at home, too busy training you know," I forced myself to act like my usual nonchalant self, and shrugged.

"You only wore that lace dress once, why not wear it again just for fun?" Rukia asked, "Hey guys, I'm going with Karin so that she can change into something a little cleaner, we'll be there in a few minutes!" Rukia grabbed my hand a dragged me towards my room. _Hm, I'm having a sense of déjà vu, I wonder why? Oh yeah, that's right; IT'S BECAUSE EVERYONE INSIST'S ON DRAGGING ME AROUND LIKE A RAG DOLL! Geez, Rukia's only my height, if not a little shorter, and yet she's strong enough to drag me around like I weigh nothing._

During my mini in-my-head rant, I hadn't noticed that we were almost to my apartment. I gulped, really not enjoying the idea of getting back into that dress, "Alright, let's go get the dress then. And remember, the sooner you put it on, the sooner you get to eat," Rukia told me, tapping her foot while I stepped into my room. I quickly put the dress on, along with the strappy little sandals and stepped back out.

"This is the most I'm doing. I'm not letting my hair out of its ponytail, and I'm definitely not putting any makeup on," I crossed my arms and scowled, "Now can we go and eat?"

"You look so pretty in that dress! I wonder if I should have gone with a dark grey though to match your eyes? Well, we can go if you really aren't putting on any- ow! Watch how hard you grab my arm, that hurt!" Rukia yelled as I dragged her out of the room this time. _Okay, now I understand why they did this, it's a lot of fun to drag someone around!_ I quickly walked to the dining hall and then let go of Rukia's arm to open the door. The biggest table was filled with my friends, and I was pleasantly surprised to find that Orihime, Uryuu, Chad, Yuzu and Tatsuki had come too. There were only two places left, and the chair at the head of the table had a balloon tied to it that had 'Congratulations Karin!' written on it, so I think I had to sit there. I noticed the stares I got from the assorted people sitting down. Some people (Renji, Ikkaku and Kyoraku) smirked or grinned, others gushed about how 'cute and grown up' I looked (Orihime, Matsumoto and Yumichika) while almost everyone else looked either stoic (Toshiro, Chad, Nanao) or uncomfortable (Uryuu, Kira and Ukitake just to name a few).

"Any comments and I will not hesitate to slap you, no matter what your rank is," I growled. I ignored the rush of comments from those who ignored my warning and sat down. I was happy to notice that Tatsuki and Renji were holding hands under that table, and even waggled my eyebrows at them when they looked my way, causing them both to blush. On my left sat the happy couple with Shuuhei on the other side of Renji, and on my right was Toshiro. While I was unhappy with that last part, I ignored him and tried to have fun for the rest of the night. All was going well until Renji, that idiot, let an important piece of information slip.

"I can't believe that we have to go and fight tomorrow! Our last full day was spent watching a bunch of kids run around trying to kill fake Hollows! No offense Karin, you were actually the only competent one out there. Obviously, otherwise you wouldn't be Fifth seat of Captain Hitsugaya's division," Renji said after dessert was served. Everyone froze and time seemed to slow down, and everyone's reactions slowed with it. Most people were stunned into silence, and others just gasped. Tatsuki hit the back of Renji's head and called him an idiot. Other's just grimaced and looked like they were hoping for the best.

"YOU IDIOT! WE ALL MADE AN AGREEMENT NOT TO TELL KARIN THAT UNTIL AFTER WE WERE ALL DONE EATING!" Tatsuki smacked Renji's head again while she yelled at him.

"Wait, what?!" I jumped up, self-consciously checking to make sure that nothing was showing then continued on my rant, glaring at the assorted group, "Why didn't you guys tell me this? And you told _Yuzu_ before me?! I'd rather be told about it and be unhappy then be told _the day before you all leave!_" I hissed and I could feel tears pricking at my eyes again. _You will not cry in front of your friends and sister. You will not cry in front of your friends and sister._

"We didn't want to distract you from your studies," Orihime offered meekly.

"I may be the youngest person here, even if only by a few minutes, but I am NOT a little girl! I'm old enough to understand my duties to myself and the people around me to know that I couldn't slack off in my studies. Did you think that by putting off telling me until the last minute that I'd be any happier about it? Well newsflash, I'M NOT!" I pushed my chair out from the table so quickly that it tipped over. I stalked out of the room, leaving everyone behind me. _Probably not your best idea Karin. They were only looking out for you and you yell at them then storm out. Yeah, you're really nice, aren't you._ I kept walking, just letting my feet carry me someplace. Normally, I always hurry along my way, not really noticing what everything around me looked like, but tonight I did. I was walking along an empty street, all by myself. Eventually I came to a stone fountain and sat on the edge, absorbed in my thoughts once more.

_I've been wondering for a while how this place seems so big, like it shouldn't fit in this valley, yet it does, even leaving plenty of space between here and my brother's house. I wonder if I could make a break for it without being caught by anyone? Ugh, what am I saying, I'm going to be needed here, and just because I'm mad at my friends doesn't mean I can run from my responsibilities. That would make you an even worse person than before, and you're a pretty horrible person for doing that to your friends. I should just-_

"Am I interrupting anything?" An all too familiar deep voice asked, indeed interrupting my thoughts. Toshiro sat down next to me on the fountain and I moved over to put a little bit of space in between us.

"Actually you were interrupting the guilt trip that I was taking. How mad is everyone at me?" I asked, not daring to look up from the ground. I shivered, it was getting to be fall after all, and at night it got to be pretty chilly; especially if you're wearing a little sundress and sandals. To my surprise, I felt a warm jacket being dropped onto my shoulders and glanced up for a quick minute to see if it really was Toshiro. _Yup, it is._

"No one is mad at you, your reaction was completely called for in all reality," Toshiro said then he shifted, and I might be wrong here, uncomfortably and continued, "Ichigo told me that you overheard my conversation with Matsumoto Karin, and that's the real reason that I came out here; to tell you that the conversation wasn't about you." My heart fluttered and stopped for a minute, but soon picked up for the few missed beats while butterflies found their way into my stomach. _Not about me? Does that mean he still likes me? No, he has too just be telling you a lie because he feels bad._ I frowned and the fluttering stopped.

"Oh really?" I asked, my sarcasm at almost a record high, "If not me then who? I heard what you said. 'I have no clue how to tell her that I don't really return her feelings, and I hate the feeling of leading her on like this. I don't want to hurt her feelings, but I just don't like her in any way!' Yeah, who the hell else could you be talking about Toshiro?" I still didn't look up from the ground, and was surprised to find Toshiro lifting my chin up to look at him. My eyes flickered to his and his façade of being emotionless had been dropped. His eyes were full of guilt and some unreadable emotion, maybe worry?

"The conversation was about Hinamori, not you. You're the reason I had a talk with Hinamori about the whole relationship issue; I like you not her," Toshiro told me. I felt my eye widen, and I searched Toshiro's face for a minute before hugging him tightly. I could tell that he was surprised because he stiffened, but he soon relaxed and wrapped his arms around me too. Burying my face into his chest, I finally let all the tears I'd bottled up for thirteen years loose. Not in a loud, obnoxious sob, but just falling silently down my cheeks.

"I don't want to stay here tomorrow, I want to help fight on the battlefield!" I whispered into Toshiro's chest. I felt fingers run through my ponytail for a few seconds, causing me to shiver, until I got my answer.

"I'd feel a lot better with you here, and I know a lot of people who would agree with me. Nanao will be here tomorrow too, along with Yuzu, and I know that they'd really like your help. Now," I felt Toshiro stop running his fingers through my hair and instead grabbed my chin to tilt my head up. While his face still lacked emotion, his eyes were softer, "Let's go back to your party. I know that if you wanted to, you could just pretend that nothing happened." Toshiro stood up and pulled me with him. We walked back to the dining hall in companionable silence.

The rest of the party passed without mention of the next day. Renji and Tatsuki barely left each other's side, the same thing with all of the other couples. Everyone had fun, and all too soon it was time for everyone to go home and get rest for the battle. I walked home with Yuzu, after holding back tears and telling all of my friends who were going off to fight that, "They'd better comeback alive otherwise she'd bring them back to life and kill them all over again."

"Karin, can I stay in your room tonight?" Yuzu asked timidly. _Of course this is going to affect her more; she's the one who's prone to worry. Obviously she's going to need all of the sleep she can get, while I on the other hand am not going to get any sleep at all._

"Of course Yuzu, but you're going to bed as soon as we get there," I replied as we neared my rooms. She nodded and yawned as I unlocked my door and stepped inside. We both quickly prepared for bed and slipped into the sleeping places designated before Yuzu had moved out. Within minutes I heard Yuzu's soft snoring coming from the bedroom, but sleep evaded me. I rolled over onto my back and stared at the ceiling, lost in my thoughts.

_I don't know if I'll be able to sleep tonight… I wonder what everyone else is doing right now; are they sleeping, or are they fitting in some last minute training? Tomorrow is going to be a very long day. From what I got out of Toshiro and the others is that they don't expect the battle to last long, maybe eight hours or so. I'm going to have to help Lieutenant Ise as much as I can tomorrow, no complaining at all. She's probably going to be in worse shape than me what with Shunsui going out to battle; he was her very serious boyfriend, not an "I-like-you-but-I-don't-want-to-start-anything-until-after-the-battle-so-you're-not-heartbroken-if-I-don't-come-back" relationship like Toshiro and I. What about Orihime and Uryuu? They were both going out to fight, and they must be worried about each other. Then there are all of my other friends…_

_What if someone I care about doesn't make it back? So many of my friends are going out to battle. There's Tatsuki and Orihime, who took Yuzu and I under their wing when we had arrived… well more Yuzu than me due to my adventures, but still. Then there was Uryuu and Chad who helped me literally discover my fate. I can't forget all of my Lieutenant and Captain friends who helped me to become stronger, especially Renji and Matsumoto. As much as these people mean to me, there are those who are so important to me._

_First was Rukia. She had practically dropped her Lieutenant duties to come and pick up Yuzu and I, even though those probably were part of her duties… I was still kind of fuzzy on that whole part of the story. She helped me get back the book, and to distract Ichigo long enough to let me do what I needed to do. And while she may have used me as a dress-up doll a couple of times, she did it with my best interest in mind._

_Next came Ichigo, my brother chalk full of brutal honesty and strength, but managed to leave enough space for his idiotic tendencies. As much as he annoys me sometimes, he's still my brother. What he said to me earlier during our talk, about big brothers being born first to protect the little sisters from being hurt, it really made me realize that just because he had been missing out of our lives for a couple of years doesn't change the fact that he's my brother. He better not do anything too stupid, otherwise I'm going to have to kick his butt in his afterlife and make it hell for him. I don't know what I'd do if Yuzu and I lost him._

_When I think about Ichigo, I can't help but think about Yuzu too. Not because they look alike or anything like that, but because Ichigo and I shared the same over-protectiveness of Yuzu. If Ichigo didn't make it back, I think that Yuzu would be heartbroken. She would have lost both of her parents, plus her hero, her older brother. Granted she'd still have me, but how much can a sister fill the void of a missing brother and parents?_

_Lastly was Toshiro. For some reason, I'm the most scared about him going out onto the battlefield. It's got to be because he's so young that he shouldn't be there in the first place, I mean Toshiro is my age! Then there's always the fact of which that I care for him so deeply. I'm not sure if it's love, but I've never felt this strongly for someone outside of my family. The way he came after me tonight, and the way that he comforted me, it made my heart stop beating for a good minute. He is so strong, maybe even stronger than my brother when he finally reaches his full potential. He better come back alive too, otherwise I'll have to kick his ass to!_ In all retrospect, I realized that my rather… violent thoughts were just about the only way to calm my nerves; I couldn't deal with them any other way.

"Karin?" I sat up and looked around the room. Yuzu had walked in, looking like she had a much better sleep than me. I rubbed my eyes which were sore from staring at the ceiling all night and noticed that it was light out, "Did you stay up all night? That's not healthy Karin! You lie down and get some sleep and I'll make some breakfast for the two of us. We need to keep our strength up if we have no clue when the troops will get back. Do you know what Lieutenant Ise will be having you do today?" While she was talking, Yuzu was bustling around the kitchen trying to piece together something for breakfast from the meager offerings my cabinets gave her.

I yawned and stretched my back. _What are a few hours of lost sleep going to do to me? I'll bet anything that Nanao won't be on top of her game today either,_ "Yes I stayed up all night, no I'm not going to try and sleep again, and no I have no clue what she'll have me do. I was going to head over there at about seven o'clock, that's the time I usually have to be places around here anyways," I stood up and walked over to the kitchen. It looked like she was making oatmeal, but I really didn't know what it was. I was about to open my mouth and ask her when a loud knock on the door interrupted me.

"Karin, you have ten minutes to get ready in there, you too Yuzu. There will be breakfast provided at your stations when you get there," Lieutenant Ise said through the door. We both replied with an "Okay!" and we both hurried to change into our uniforms.

After we had finished changing I looked over at Yuzu seriously, "Yuzu, no matter what happens today, Ichigo and I will always be there for you. I don't know when this fight will end, but I will come and find you afterwards, got it?" Yuzu nodded and we both left the room to go our separate ways. It was a brisk five-minute walk to the Eighth Division offices where I knew I could find Lieutenant Ise.

"We have a lot of things to prepare," Lieutenant Ise told me as soon as she saw me walk through the door, "We have to patrol the borders of the city, make sure that the Fourth Squad has everything that they need, and make sure that everybody is prepared to fight if need be." Lieutenant Ise pushed her glasses up and I nodded in reply.

"If you can handle organizing the border patrols, I'll go to the Fourth and see if they need anything. When I get back I'll gather the rest of the Shinigami and start warming them up, not matter what their division," I looked for approval, and upon receiving it, I was off running towards the Fourth Division.

"We don't need anything," The third seat told me as I entered and asked my question, "Captain Unohana planned for this in advance and made sure we had all of the supplies that we would need. Thank you for the concern and consideration though." I nodded again then ran back to the Eighth Division.

"They didn't need anything," I told her upon arrival. She nodded, writing something down, and then looked at me with a very critical eye, "Um, Lieutenant Ise? Did you need something?" I was beginning to feel uneasy with the look she gave me before her look finally softened a bit.

"Do you miss him? Do you feel as if though you're not sure what will happen if he doesn't come back?" For a moment, I was stunned. _I knew that she would miss Shunsui, but I never thought that she'd ask me about it. She's normally similar to Toshiro in that aspect, never sharing her feelings._

"Yeah," I nodded then shrugged, "Of course I miss Toshiro, and of course I want him to come back. If he doesn't I know for a fact that I'm not going to just sit around and do nothing, I'm going to get stronger and avenge his death. The same goes for my brother, and Rukia, and all of my other friends, you included Lieutenant Ise," Lieutenant Is looked shocked for a moment then smiled at me.

"Call me Nanao; if you plan on theoretically avenging my death, then we should at least be on a first name basis. Now, let's do our work so that we can be ready for whenever our loved ones come back," Nanao pushed up her glasses, a new determination in her eyes, and we both set out on our separate tasks.

While I was leading everyone through warm-ups, with Nanao watching and making sure everyone participated to their full potential, a messenger came up to me. He was out of breath and it was hard to make out what he was saying, "Fifth Seat Karin, There is a Hollow too strong for the troops to beat and require assistance." I glanced at Nanao who nodded and started barking out order to the others gathered around us and told me in the midst of it to go and fight. I followed the messenger to the spot where the Hollow was and was shocked. This Hollow wasn't like any I had seen before, not that I'd seen a lot of Hollows; this one was huge and wearing a black cape. Its masked head was easily twenty feet in the air and had a pointy nose. The Hollows' arms just kind of hung there at the moment and I remembered from the Academy that these things could fire some sort of… stuff at whoever they were attacking. The border patrol that had encountered it was mostly lying on the ground injured. _I'm going to guess that that's what happened to them._

I turned to the person who had come to get me, and to my surprise I noticed that it was someone from my class. I couldn't remember his name, but I did remember that a lot of these people left here were my age and recently graduated, or close to graduating, "Make sure all of the injured get to the Fourth for treatment, and then ask Lieutenant Ise to set up another border patrol. He gave one nod, and then ran off to carry out my orders. Turning around to face the Hollow, I grinned. _This is going to be a fun challenge._

The Hollow finally seemed to acknowledge my presence and looked down at me. It swung its arm at me and I took advantage of the opportunity to run up his arm and slash my sword through its mask. As it disintegrated, I frowned to myself, _that was way too easy for being so big. I think that Miss Ochi said that these were called Menos, and they are fairly difficult to beat. Not much I can do about it now I guess._ While I was scanning the area, I saw the new border patrol come running up, panting.

"Are you alright Miss Kurosaki?" An unranked Shinigami asked me and I forced myself to not roll my eyes.

"I'm _fine._ And don't call me by my last name, there's three- oops plus Rukia now so there's four of us with the last name Kurosaki. I don't care whether you call them by their first name or last name, but please call me Karin, and JUST Karin," I smiled at them while they nodded vigorously, "Good, continue patrolling the border and report back to me when the next patrol come out." I turned and was about to walk away when one of them, who I now recognized as Kaoru, snorted. I sighed and turned back around, "Yes Kaoru?"

"Lieutenant Ise is the one in charge of border patrols, not you. Besides, I'm not in your Division so you really can't tell me what to do," Kaoru sneered and I counted to ten in my head.

I was about to reply when I heard a woman's voice behind me, "I believe that all of you were told that Lieutenant Ise and Karin were to be in charge along with the help of any other high-ranking officers while the battle is going on. If Karin asks you of tells you to do something, I'd suggest you do it and not face the anger of your Captain," The voice said and my eyes widened when my brain finally started working again.

"C-Captain Soi Fon!" Kaoru stuttered and bowed quickly.

"Thanks Byakuya, I probably could have beat some sense into him, but an injured Shinigami isn't as good as one who's just dumb," I said, bowing my head slightly and turning around to face the one Captain I thought despised me.

"It is no problem Karin," Was that a smile I saw edging its way onto Soi Fon's face? _I must be hallucinating, she doesn't smile!_ "Although when I came to deliver a message to Lieutenant Ise and you, I did not expect to watch you defeat a Menos so quickly. That is part of the reason I came as well, to help defeat it." Captain Soi Fon said and handed me a letter, "Please wait to read it until you are with Lieutenant Ise, I'd tell you what it said, but the Head Captain gave no indication as to what it says. I have to get back to the fighting. As for you," She turned to Kaoru, "Who is your captain?"

"C-Captain Zaraki!" I think that I actually heard Kaoru squeak when he answered the question. Captain Soi Fon only snorted in response, then was off running so fast I only caught glimpses of her, and even then she was easily 20 feet away from where she had been before.

"Alright, you" I pointed to a random member of the patrol, "Will report to either Lieutenant Ise or me when the next shift comes." I waited for a nod before I was off and running to find Nanao. When I finally reached her, I held out the letter. She stopped what she was doing, which was directing everyone around so that when the fighters came they could get immediate help.

"Everyone, keep doing what you're doing. If you finish your duties, report to this courtyard and wait for further instructions," Nanao pushed up her glasses and gave them all a look that dared them to defy her orders. Once we were sure that they all kept working, we retreated to Nanao's office to read the letter.

* * *

_Lieutenant Ise and Karin,_

_The fighting is already drawing to a close. So far the casualties have been very light on our side, and there are three Arrancar willing to cooperate with us. We will need to have cells for them ready, and if you could put a barrier around them, that would be preferable Lieutenant Ise. Karin, if you could see to it that there will be plenty of moral support for when we get back, that would be much appreciated. I have witnessed firsthand your ease in dealing with large groups of people, so I put trust in you. I have a feeling Karin is frowning right now so I will explain, many of our fighters are becoming discouraged, so the crowd upon return will hopefully raise morale. I also have a feeling that the two of you, along with everyone else left behind is worried about the conditions of your loved one. Captains Kyoraku and Ukitake are both doing fine, Shunsui was slightly injured while he was fighting Coyote Starrk, (he took a Cero to the back) he was proven to be perfectly okay when the former lieutenant and now Visored Lisa Yadomaru confronted him about the extent of his injuries. As for Ichigo, he seems to be doing fine, fighting with the bull-headedness that defines him. I expect we will be back in roughly three hours as long as Aizen appears as we predicted and we do not encounter any major setbacks. I will send someone ahead to tell you when we are nearby._

_Until then,_

_Head Captain Yamamoto._

* * *

I looked up at Nanao, who was shocked. She didn't even react when I waved my hand directly in front of her face, "Nanao!" I shook her shoulders and her head snapped up to reveal her smiling, "Geesh, don't do that to me! I was worried that you got broken or something. What does the Old Man mean by placing a barrier around the cells? Aren't there already bars there?"

"That's right, you don't know about the Demon Arts. Some Shinigami like me are able to do what we call the Demon Arts which is basically using our own stores of energy to create things like barriers or other things similar to bullets. Captain Unohana and a lot of the Fourth Squad members are very good at the Demon Arts and use it for healing when the wounds are very bad. Captain Soi Fon uses it for what she calls Flash Step to help her move more quickly. I'll see if when we have time I can figure out if you're able to use them and then teach you some of them, and maybe Captain Soi Fon will teach you flash step if it's possible. However, I feel it is time for us to get busy doing our duties. If it doesn't take you too long, do you think maybe you could find out a way for those returning to eat? I would, but these barriers take a lot of time and concentration if we want them done right," Nanao straightened herself out and walked off to the cells where, oddly enough, had been held captive for those few short hours. I got up and walked outside, wanting to get everything down so that I could prove myself to everyone.

_I don't even know if anyone is doubting me, but I just need to be sure that everyone will take me seriously. All throughout my time on the kendo team and on the soccer team I had been underestimated, but now I refuse to be._ As soon as I got to the courtyard where everyone was waiting, I heard a murmur of voices. As soon as I stepped into the courtyard, the voices hushed and all eyes turned to me expectantly.

"The fighting will supposedly be over in a few hours. So far there have been few casualties, but," I looked over them as they all seemed to sag in relief for their comrades. I knew from my time as captain of the soccer team and being on the kendo team, that for all good information, you need to keep your teammates on their toes and be ready to still accept the worst. The majority of the time it was my job to pump the team up, I even had a medal somewhere saying that, "A lot can change in even the span of a minute in a fight. We still need to be prepared for casualties and injuries. What I want all of you to do now is of the utmost importance. I need you all to support your comrades, both literally and figuratively. Anyone who can cook needs to report to the kitchen immediately to help make something edible. If all goes well, maybe, no promises here, just maybe we can talk the Head Captain into giving us a party to celebrate our victory. Now let's work!" I whooped, smiling a laughing while the others clapped and laughed with me then set out to do their jobs.

Two hours passed quickly while I helped others gather materials for a banner and directed others to go onto the battlement wall and keep a watch out for any signal that the others were coming back. Yuzu had found me in the confusion and asked what I needed her to do.

"I know you did this all the time for Goat Chin and I, but could you go and keep an eye on things in the kitchens? The Old Man wanted Nanao and I to help bring some moral support to everyone coming back and to make sure that there would be food ready as well. I suspect now that he wanted the 'moral support' to help make time go more quickly for us and distract us from-" I was interrupted by a wave from a squad member who had been keeping watch on the battlements. He was supporting a person, and upon closer inspection I realized that it was Tatsuki who looked completely worn out. She still had enough energy to raise her head to smile at me and wave her hand. I rushed forward and grabbed her other arm and put it around my shoulders while Nanao finally made an appearance.

"Open up the gates on the wall that Tatsuki came in and make sure that there are enough medical supplies, stretchers and people to help with the injured. Any of you who don't have anything to do will help their injured comrades to a bed in the Fourth Division or onto a stretcher here if they won't make it. Follow any orders that _any_ Captain or Lieutenant may give you. Now!" Nanao gave orders in her clear and calm voice, but I could see her hands shaking. She was sweating slightly and I could tell that she was over exhausted as she told a group of ranked Shinigami to be prepared to bring the prisoner Arrancar to the cells that she had created a barrier around.

"How's ever-" I started but was once again cut off by the arrival of people. The Shinigami who had been fighting were starting to file in.

First to come in were the Shinigami who sustained little to no wounds. As a looked for familiar faces I saw Orihime who was clutching Uryuu's arm, Chad, Matsumoto and many others. When Matsumoto saw Nanao and me standing together, she made a beeline for us. I momentarily ignored her to find more friends.

Next to come were those who were supporting each other. Among them I saw Renji and Rukia along with several of my high ranking friends. I felt my heartbeat speed up when I noted the missing faces of a couple of important people. Vaguely I noticed that Nanao was gripping my arm as she hadn't yet found Shunsui either.

There had been cheering and respectful clapping as the first two groups of people walked through the gates, but it quickly became deathly quiet as the last group came in. Those who had been injured bad enough that they were either unconscious or had been brought in on make-shift stretchers. I felt my gut sink as I saw Ichigo being carried in, unconscious. The next person I saw was Soi Fon. _It's not possible, I just saw her a couple of hours ago and she was perfectly fine, even her usual snotty self!_ Nanao leaned on me and gasped, tightening her grip on my arm as she saw Shunsui being carried in as well, right next to Captain Ukitake. I almost ran forward to my brother, but Nanao held me in place. _Where's Toshiro? He has to be somewhere in one of these groups._

"Nanao, go to Shunsui," Matsumoto told Nanao, prying her hands off of my arm. Once Nanao had nodded and walked after her Captain and lover, Matsumoto turned to me. I had never seen Matsumoto serious before, and it didn't suit her, "Karin, Toshiro was injured. Badly," Matsumoto swallowed, "Aizen cut down him, Shunsui, Soi Fon and a couple of others with no effort on his part. Your brother did something, I'm not sure what, but he was able to use most of his energy to defeat Aizen once and for all. Your brother will be fine, but I need you to do me a favor. I have to go and see Gin, but I don't want to leave my Captain alone, will you stay with him? If you're still worried about Ichigo I can always divide the time."

"No," I answered quickly, "It's the least I can do. Besides, he's my friend too and I want to keep an eye on him. I also don't want to be there when Ichigo wakes up if Rukia is there because that will sure be interesting," I forced out a chuckle for Matsumoto, but lost all function of my lungs as my eyes slid past her to land on Toshiro.

He was bleeding and covered in blood all over. His eyes were closed and his skin had almost a deathly paleness to them. I ran over to Toshiro as they brought him in and helped direct the people carrying him to one of the private rooms set aside for the Captains and Lieutenants. I walked out while the healers of the Fourth used what they called kidou (I took this to be those Demon Arts Nanao was talking about) to heal his worst wounds.

"Karin Kurosaki, just the person that I wanted to see," I turned around quickly to see the Old Man walking towards me. His wounds looked serious, but he was walking around like nothing had even happened, "I wanted to thank you for the hard work you and Nanao put into making sure that things ran smoothly while the higher-ups were gone. Soi Fon told me an interesting bit of news as she came back that she saw you take down a Menos with ease. With news as interesting as that, I'd like you to know that I will be monitoring your abilities as you get more training. Now go and see your loved ones." With that he walked past me and into a room.

I don't know how long I just sat outside Toshiro's room, waiting for the healers to come out and say that I could see him. Finally, after what seemed like hours, they gave me the news I wanted and I rushed in. Toshiro was still pale looking, but not nearly as deathly. His breathing was steady and even, as indicated by the rhythmic rise and fall of his chest. I noted with distaste that although he was bandaged, they had not cleaned much of the other grime and blood off. I rolled up my sleeves and grabbed the sponge in the basin that was on the table next to the bed. I made quick work of getting the grime and blood off and simply wiped my hands on the pristine white towel they had left there. _Well, it's not pristine anymore now that I'm done with it._

Once I had finished cleaning up Toshiro's chest, a _very_ well-defined chest I might add, I sat down next to the bed. I gulped and avoided looking at Toshiro's face, "Why did you do something so stupid you midget? It's bad enough that I had to worry about my idiot brother, but you too?" I placed my hand on top of Toshiro's and squeezed lightly, feeling a soft squeeze in return. I chalked it up to subconscious reflexes and continued, "I need to pick the people I care for better." After a day of such excitement, I was beginning to feel my lack of sleep from last night. I laid my head down on the bed next to Toshiro's head and made sure both of our arms were in comfortable positions. As I closed my eyes, I heard the sheets and pillows rustling a little then felt a something warm being pressed against the top of my head.

"I think that you're doing a great job," Toshiro whispered into my hair, and I sat up. He looked at me then pulled me closer; we still hadn't let go of each other's hands. I was pulled onto the bed alongside of him and I blushed from how effortless he made it seem by completing the task so fast. I felt my face get warmer when I realized that Toshiro was laying on his back and I was laying on my side facing him. His head turned towards mine and butterflies erupted in my stomach at our close proximity. His other hands came up and cupped my cheek while he looked at me intensely and leaned closer until he whispered in my ear, "Sorry if you don't like what I'm about to do, but I have to do it."

His sentence alone sent shivers down my spine and when he gently placed his lips over mine, I felt electricity running through me again. It was everything a first kiss should be; sweet, gentle yet still passionate. When we pulled back after a few seconds, I was out of breath and it didn't seem to be coming back anytime soon.

"Karin Kurosaki, I care for you very deeply, will you be my girlfriend?" Toshiro asked me.

"You idiot, I thought you knew that I hated those sappy moments," I smiled, "But of course I will."

**TADA! I thought I'd end the pre-timeskip with a little fluff between Karin and Toshiro! So the next chapter will PROBABLY (no promises) be fairly short as the word count for this story has now reached into the 9,000's. I've only gotten a few things left to say. 1 thank you for waiting an extra week, but in return I made the chapter HUUUGE** **and 2) REVIEW PLEASE! Even a simply "Good!" or "Terrible everything" is appreciated! Ta-Ta for now!**


	15. Epilogue

**It's the end of my first story! I almost feel like crying if it weren't for the fact of which that I'm already crying because school starts in 2 weeks D': This last chapter (the epilogue) will start out three years later, then will have two memories from Karin's POV showing the last three years in sort of snapshots. Well since this is the epilogue, so I thought that for old time's sake:**

**Disclaimer: I do NOT own Bleach, I just toy with the characters and their emotions. Without further ado, the epilogue!**

**Karin's POV:**

_Three years later…_

I sighed and stared around my empty office. Matsumoto was out with Gin and Toshiro was in the dojo training. I sighed again and got back to filling out the reports that would have to be signed by either Matsumoto or Toshiro since they were my superior officers. _I wish my paperwork was done too. For once Toshiro's paperwork was completely done, but of course then I needed to get saddled with more than just my share from Matsumoto. I guess I can't blame Matsumoto, after all it IS hers and Gin's anniversary and since he refused the role of captain time and time again, it is understandable that they'd want to celebrate. If I would had known that being moved up from Fifth Seat meant doing more paperwork, I never would have accepted the position! On the bright side, now that I have to do more paperwork, I don't have to sit around bored while waiting for Toshiro to get done. He sure has gotten taller since the battle against Aizen, much taller than he had been when I first met him. So much has changed since the time I was seventeen, it's really incredible._ I smiled and stopped writing while I let my memories take me away from the office.

* * *

_Three years ago, the day after the battle…_

I opened my eyes and tried to figure out where I was. My brain wasn't fully awake, and neither was I. _I suppose that it would be okay if I slept in a little bit longer, I mean I bet a lot of other people are sleeping in._ I snuggled into my bed and noted with groggy happiness that it was very warm and comfortable. My blanket was warm too, and tightened around me as I snuggled as close to the warmth as I could. _I must be exhausted still, I'm imagining things like my blanket tightening around me and my pillow is rising up and down, up and down, like someone breathing._ My eyes shot open and I froze. I was using Toshiro as a pillow with my head on his chest and our legs were slightly tangled up. His arms were around my waist and his face was pressed to my hair. He must have sensed my awakening because he opened one eye and smirked at me.

"How nice of you to decide to keep me warm this morning," Toshiro said and pulled me a little bit closer. I could feel my face start to warm up as Toshiro closed the eye he had opened, "But when did you go and get another blanket?"

"I didn't," I trailed off as I noticed that the door was slightly open, "Who's out there?" I tried to sit up but Toshiro held me and mumbled that he didn't want to get up yet. The door slowly opened to reveal Matsumoto, Yuzu and Rukia; all of them grinning from ear to ear.

"Good morning you lovebirds!" Matsumoto sang as she practically skipped into the room. Toshiro growled and finally opened both f his eyes to glare at his Lieutenant, getting a chuckle from all of the females in the room, myself included.

"Oh and Karin," Yuzu said turning her attention to me, "Ichigo found you two snuggled up last night and he is very unhappy. I'd suggest going into hiding after the meeting."

"What meeting?" Toshiro and I asked at the same time, sitting up.

"The one in two hours, that's what we came here to tell you," Matsumoto told me, "The Head Captain wants you both to attend along with Ichigo and all of the Lieutenants. Right now though, you two need to get something to eat!" The three other females left the room and Toshiro and I shared a look of mutual suffering.

"Let's get up and get ready then," I said getting up. Now that I was awake and knew I had to be on my toes for Ichigo, I was ready for some food.

"You're right. I wonder what they have for breakfast in the dining hall," Toshiro said as he gingerly stood up. We made our way to the dining hall slowly but surely. Once we got there we got our food and sat down, ignoring any stares we were getting.

"So what happened yesterday? How did Aizen get to you so easily?" I asked while trying to get the perfect combination of milk and cereal in my bowl.

"We were too cocky, "He shrugged his shoulders then hissed in pain, "But it's all alright now. Hurry up and eat the cereal already, we both still have to change and take a shower and the meeting starts in a little over an hour. I didn't think it'd hurt this much to move around." _Finally, the perfect amount of both cereal and milk!_ It took us only a few minutes to eat and then we parted ways to go and get ready for the meeting. After a nice relaxing shower, I quickly changed and went to meet Toshiro in front of the First Division where the meeting was being held.

When I got there, only a few of the Captains and Lieutenants were there. I was glad to see Kyoraku, Nanao and Ukitake chatting while sitting down in the chairs provided. Byakuya was, surprisingly, not wearing a haori, and now that I noticed it, neither was Kyoraku. Renji was at his Captain's side and looked highly uncomfortable. I was even happy to note that Soi Fon looked like she was back to her normal self, proven by the way she was snapping at Omaeda. I stood there trying to figure out where I should stand when Ukitake waved me over.

"Thank you so much Karin for taking such good care of my little Nanao while I was fighting! Oh how I love my little Nanao- OW! My Nanao is so cruel to me!" Kyoraku said, at first smiling and holding Nanao's hand happily, then clutching his head where her fan had made contact.

"What did I tell you about saying those kinds of things at Captains meetings?" Nanao Said as she tucked her fan back into her sleeve.

"Well Karin, we heard about the Menos that you had fought while defending the Seireitei. I have to say, that was quite exceptional from the way Captain Soi Fon described it, even she seemed impressed. I have a good feeling about having you here," Captain Ukitake smiled at me and I smiled back.

"Yes Karin, we were all impressed," A man with blond hair that fell to the bottom of his ears said as he walked up to me and smiled, his smile was kind of creepy, and looked sort of forced. He was with another blonde man who's hair was long and curly, along with a man who had silvery hair, "I'm Shinji, a Visored. This is Rose," He gestured to the other blond man, "And Kensei," He pointed to the man with silvery hair.

"I gotta say, you seem a lot less annoying than your brother. It was torture to train him," The one named Kensei complained. I talked to the Visoreds until Toshiro walked in. As he made his way over to where I was, Yamamoto called for the meeting to start. At the last minute, Ichigo and Rukia appeared behind me from the other side of the retaining wall.

"I wanted to congratulate you all on fighting so well, you all tried your hardest and the results were satisfactory. I am also proud to say that we have discovered the truth behind the Visoreds, and that they are welcome back anytime that they please. Shinji, Kensei and Rose, I am offering you three the roles of Captain. Rose for the Third Division, Shinji the Fifth, and Kensei your old position in the Ninth. Do you accept?" Yamamoto looked at the three of them.

"Yeah," Kensei said and grinned as he was presented with a haori from Shuuhei who seemed dumbfounded.

"No," Rose replied, "I would like to stay with the Visoreds with all due respect."

"I don't want it either," Shinji said, "For one thing, Hiyori would kill me, and for another I don't want to leave the Visoreds."

Yamamoto nodded then turned to my brother, "Ichigo Kurosaki, will you accept the position of the Fifth Division Captain then?"

For once my brother looked serious and nodded. He was given a haori of his own and he smiled, actually smiled! Yamamoto went on to talk about the bravery that everyone had shown, both at the battle and those who stayed here. Once he had dismissed everyone, Toshiro and I snuck to my apartment and locked the door. We stayed there for the rest of the day since we didn't have to go back to our duties until tomorrow.

* * *

_Two years ago, the 1 year anniversary of Aizen's defeat…_

"Come on Kurosaki, how do you expect to live up to your brother's standards if you fight like that?" Toshiro said, no emotions on his face. I gritted my teeth and wiped the sweat off of my forehead. As Toshiro charged at me, I scowled and sidestepped then kicked him in the back which caused him to stumble. He was able to recover and maneuver his zanpakuto so that it pointed at my throat, " And that," He smirked, "Is why your only the Third Seat." I scowled at him then used my own zanpakuto to push his away and switch our positions.

"Remember what you said Oh Short One: never turn let your guard down," I smiled broadly as it was Toshiro's turn to scowl.

"Captain Hitsugaya, Third Seat Kurosaki," I messenger appeared in the dojo as Toshiro and I were about to get back up and begin again, "The Head Captain wishes to speak to the both of you at an emergency Captains meeting." We both nodded and the messenger went on to relay the information to the other captains.

"I understand you Toshiro, but why me?" I asked as we straightened our clothes out a little to seem just a bit more presentable.

"I don't know," He shrugged, "What do you want to do for supper though?"

"We're going over to Byakuya's for the monthly dinner, remember? There's no way we can back out since Rukia is making Ichigo go, and Yuzu is bringing the red-headed brat too," I told him as we walked to the First Division, Toshiro with his hands at his side and me with my hands behind my head. We may have been a couple, but we weren't really into the whole PDA crap, and we could have flash stepped, but this was much more relaxing after a brutal training session. In the last year I had been working on my fighting skills with Toshiro, the Demon Arts with Nanao and how to flash step with Soi Fon and Yoruichi. Surprisingly, I became good friends with the Second Division Captain once we got over our first encounter. Byakuya was another person that I surprisingly got along with fairly well, especially considering that fact that he still doesn't really care for my brother.

"Damn it, I never look forward to those," Toshiro swore softly, "At least they aren't as awkward as the first time we had a dinner the day after the battle. I think your brother was five seconds away from exploding because of everything that had happened. Between us becoming a couple, him being made a captain and Yuzu telling him that she was dating Jinta, he sure had a lot of information to take in." We arrived at the First Division, and were one of the first ones there. We stood to one side until all of the captains were there and Yamamoto started the meeting.

"As you all know, the position of the Third Division Captain is still open, and we have finally, unanimously, settled on a new candidate. Karin Kurosaki, please step forward," Yamamoto said. Bewildered, I looked around at my companions who were smiling at me in encouragement. I stepped forward and swallowed, "Karin Kurosaki, do you accept the role of Third Division Captain with Kira Izuru as your Lieutenant?"

"I do," I said and then grinned as Kira stepped forward, a small smile on his usually serious face as he handed me my haori. I put it on then smiled even broader as Toshiro was the first to step forward, along with my brother. Everyone congratulated me and I felt like I was on cloud nine… no that wasn't nearly high enough, could 900 seemed more appropriate.

"Congratulations Karin," Toshiro whispered in my ear as he wrapped his arms around my waist and pulled me back into him. I blushed and looked at him, my smile still glued onto my face. _Why is he doing this in public, we never do this in public! He only acts like this when he doesn't want me to act up, but why would I act up? It's not like… he… did anything._

"WAIT A SECOND!" I yelled and turned around in his arms. He grimaced and let go of me as the others gathered around us for the inevitable show, "You knew! You knew that I was a candidate for captain and _you. Never. Said. Anything!_" I hissed out and put my hands on my hips in anger.

"But Karin, I couldn't tell you because it would ruin the surprise," Toshiro drawled as he crossed his arms. I scowled in a combination of how my brother and Toshiro both scowled.

"Oh Toshiro, you're in troouuble," My brother snickered and I turned to him to glare at him. He cringed and took a step back as he saw what I would liken to the fires of Hell in my eyes, "D-don't do anything stupid Karin," My brother said as he tried to remain unwavering.

"I haven't even started with you yet Ichigo, so shut up and try not to make things worse for yourself," I growled and my brother nodded. I turned around and was greeted to the sight of Matsumoto's breasts close up.

"KARIN! I JUST FOUND OUT THE GOOD NEWS! I AM SO PROUD OF YOU!" Matsumoto said and crushed me to her chest, "Come on, we have to go and get Yuzu to tell her the good news!" Matsumoto squealed and dragged me away. _I guess my hopes of not being dragged around anymore when I was a captain didn't come true._

"I'm not done with you two yet!" I called out to Toshiro and my brother, glaring at them again as they laughed, well Ichigo laughed and Toshiro smirked, at my predicament.

* * *

_Back to three years later in Karin's office…_

"Done!" I yelled, startling Kira, as soon as I had signed my last piece of paperwork, "Kira, would you mind delivering these to the First Division for me? I need to go and meet Toshiro for supper, he has something he wanted to tell me tonight."

"Sure thing Karin," Kira said as he grabbed the stack and made his way out of the office. I wrote a note telling all division members that I was gone to the rest of the evening and to only look for me if it was a major emergency. Strolling out of the office, I made my way to the dining hall where Toshiro had told me to meet him at five o'clock. I glanced at my watch and noted with satisfaction that it was only 4:45 so I could take a little time for myself. As I got closer to the dining hall, I came across some Tenth Division members who shared a look of complete knowing before walking away, chuckling to themselves.

"Hey Karin," Toshiro said once I had gotten to the door, "Ready to eat?"

"Yeah, I could use some food after using today for my paperwork," I stretched and lead Toshiro inside. We went to our regular table when I noticed everyone watching the two of us. I rolled my eyes and sat down one side of the table and Toshiro was on the other. I looked down to my food and unfolded my napkin to put it on my lap. As it unfolded, something in a white box became uncovered. My heart caught in my chest and I felt like I couldn't breathe. I looked up at Toshiro who took the box from my hand and opened it for me, revealing a simple ring. It was silver with one diamond on it, something I'd pick out for an engagement ring.

"Karin Kurosaki, will you marry me?" Toshiro asked.

"Of course you idiot!" I said and got up to hug Toshiro. Everyone around us clapped and whistled and I felt my face heat up again when a thought struck me, "Wait, how did you get Ichigo's approval?" I asked in confusion.

Toshiro grimaced in answer and replied, "You don't even want to know."

And honestly, at that minute, I couldn't care less because Toshiro was kissing me. Being true to myself, this kiss was possibly even better than our first kiss three years ago to the day. Three years ago when we had started dating and Aizen had been defeated.

_I can't wait for the future._

**FIN**

**It feels so wonderful to be clicking the completed button on this story! I think I love how this ended, and no, before anyone asks, I will not do another chapter on the wedding, I don't know if I could do it that well honestly. Now for a list of the people to thank for reviewing! There's:**

**FlyingLikeAButterfly; Smitha; animeluvv679; some Guest reviewers; Kai Kurosaki; azngirlhere; and Fantom-Cosplayer.**

**I'd also like to thank everyone who followed this story or added it to their favorites list, it means a lot too! And now here's my hopes for the future, no promises, but my hopes.**

**1. Writing my one-shot for FlyingLikeAButterfly. The prompt was… Karin and Toshiro are secret agents!**

**2. I will be writing a one-shot/drabble collection following this 100 drawing challenge. I'm adapting it for writing so no, there won't be any pictures. **

**3. Writing more fanfics with my favorite pairings!**

**Until then my friends; Ta-ta!**


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